What is it Zeolitite Chabasite?

Zeolites are microporous, aluminosilicate minerals commonly used as commercial adsorbents and catalysts.The term zeolite was originally coined in 1756 by Swedish mineralogist Axel Fredrik Cronstedt, who observed that rapidly heating the material, believed to have been stilbite, produced large amounts of steam from water that had been adsorbed by the material. Based on this, he called the material zeolite, from the Greek ζέω (zéō), meaning "to boil" and λίθος (líthos), meaning "stone".The classic reference for the field has been Breck's book Zeolite Molecular Sieves: Structure, Chemistry, And Use.

 

Zeolites occur naturally but are also produced industrially on a large scale. As of September 2016, 232 unique zeolite frameworks have been identified, and over 40 naturally occurring zeolite frameworks are known. Every new zeolite structure that is obtained has to be approved by the International Zeolite Association Structure Commission and receives a three letter designation.

 

Zeolites have a porous structure that can accommodate a wide variety of cations, such as Na+, K+, Ca2+, Mg2+ and others. These positive ions are rather loosely held and can readily be exchanged for others in a contact solution. Some of the more common mineral zeolites are analcime, chabazite, clinoptilolite, heulandite, natrolite, phillipsite, and stilbite. An example of the mineral formula of a zeolite is: Na2Al2Si3O10·2H2O, the formula for natrolite. These cation exchanged zeolites posses different acidity and catalyse several acid catalysis.

Natural zeolites form where volcanic rocks and ash layers react with alkaline groundwater. Zeolites also crystallize in post-depositional environments over periods ranging from thousands to millions of years in shallow marine basins. Naturally occurring zeolites are rarely pure and are contaminated to varying degrees by other minerals, metals, quartz, or other zeolites. For this reason, naturally occurring zeolites are excluded from many important commercial applications where uniformity and purity are essential.

Zeolites are the aluminosilicate members of the family of microporous solids known as "molecular sieves" mainly consisting of Si, Al, O, and metals including Ti, Sn, Zn, and so on. The term molecular sieve refers to a particular property of these materials, i.e., the ability to selectively sort molecules based primarily on a size exclusion process. This is due to a very regular pore structure of molecular dimensions. The maximum size of the molecular or ionic species that can enter the pores of a zeolite is controlled by the dimensions of the channels. These are conventionally defined by the ring size of the aperture, where, for example, the term "8-ring" refers to a closed loop that is built from eight tetrahedrally coordinated silicon (or aluminium) atoms and 8 oxygen atoms. These rings are not always perfectly symmetrical due to a variety of effects, including strain induced by the bonding between units that are needed to produce the overall structure, or coordination of some of the oxygen atoms of the rings to cations within the structure. Therefore, the pores in many zeolites are not cylindrical.

 

Zeolites transform to other minerals under weathering, hydrothermal alteration or metamorphic conditions. Some examples:

 

The sequence of silica-rich volcanic rocks commonly progresses from:

Clay → quartz → mordenite–heulandite → epistilbite → stilbite → thomsonite–mesolite-scolecite → chabazite → calcite.

The sequence of silica-poor volcanic rocks commonly progresses from:

Cowlesite → levyne–offretite → analcime → thomsonite–mesolite-scolecite → chabazite → calcite

 

Research into and development of the many biochemical and biomedical applications of zeolites, particularly the naturally occurring species heulandite, clinoptilolite and chabazite has been ongoing.[26]

 

Zeolite-based oxygen concentrator systems are widely used to produce medical-grade oxygen. The zeolite is used as a molecular sieve to create purified oxygen from air using its ability to trap impurities, in a process involving the adsorption of nitrogen, leaving highly purified oxygen and up to 5% argon.

 

QuikClot brand hemostatic agent, which is used to stop severe bleeding, contains a calcium-loaded form of zeolite found in kaolin clay.

In agriculture, clinoptilolite (a naturally occurring zeolite) is used as a soil treatment. It provides a source of slowly released potassium. If previously loaded with ammonium, the zeolite can serve a similar function in the slow release of nitrogen. Zeolites can also act as water moderators, in which they will absorb up to 55% of their weight in water and slowly release it under the plant's demand. This property can prevent root rot and moderate drought cycles. Clinoptilolite has also been added to chicken food, the absorption of water and ammonia by the zeolite made the birds' droppings drier, less odoriferous and hence easier to handle.

 

Pet stores market zeolites for use as filter additives in aquaria. In aquaria, zeolites can be used to adsorb ammonia and other nitrogenous compounds. However, due to the high affinity of some zeolites for calcium, they may be less effective in hard water and may deplete calcium. Zeolite filtration is used in some marine aquaria to keep nutrient concentrations low for the benefit of corals adapted to nutrient-depleted waters.

 

Where and how the zeolite was formed is an important consideration for aquaria. Most Northern hemisphere natural zeolites were formed when molten lava came in contact with sea water, thereby "loading" the zeolite with Na (sodium) sacrificial ions. The mechanism is well known to chemists as ion exchange. These sodium ions will speciate with other ions in solution, thus the takeup of nitrogen in ammonia, with the release of the sodium. A deposit near Bear River in southern Idaho, (US) is a fresh water variety (Na < 0.05%). Southern hemisphere zeolites are typically formed in freshwater and have a high calcium content.[citation needed]

 

Zeolite filters ammonia effectively, but must be used with some care, especially with delicate tropical corals that are sensitive to water chemistry and temperature.

 

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