Synthesis and Characterization of Zeolitic Pellets Manufactured from Coal Fly Ash

Zeolitization of coal fly ash has been studied systematically as a potential approach. However, most of zeolitic materials are powder and this limits their large-scale industrial applications. In this paper, zeolitic pellets from coal fly ash were successful synthesized by molding and classic alkaline conversion. The content of NaOH and Aluminum powder were investigated in the process of molding. The zeolite synthesis was studied as a function of temperature, time, and activation solution concentration. The major zeolites synthesized were sodalite and nepheline. Pure sodalite/nepheline pellets were obtained by the optimal zeolitization conditions. This work introduces a practicable preparation method of zeolitic pellets and removes the limitation in practical use.