Heteroatom-Induced\nFractal Growth for Hierarchical\nZeolites

Hierarchical\nzeolites have been demonstrated to be advantageous\nin catalysis and adsorption applications due to facilitated diffusion\nwithout degrading its molecule sieving function. However, the direct\nsynthesis of hierarchical zeolites in one step is still challenging.\nHerein, we report a simple one-step synthesis of single-crystalline\nhierarchical zeolites by fractal growth induced by the strong adsorption\nof heteroatom metal species on the initially formed crystals. This\nmethod is feasible in the presence of a variety of metal species (M–OH),\nwhich can develop a stronger hydrogen bond with Si–OH in comparison\nto that among Si–OH themselves, such as Ti, Sn, Ga, Nb, and\nV. Furthermore, the method is versatile as substantiated with several\ncommon zeolites, including ZSM-5, TS-1, and ZSM-11. Such a hierarchical\nzeolite exhibits significantly enhanced activity in polyethylene pyrolysis\nand a remarkably prolonged lifetime in methanol conversion to hydrocarbons\ndue to facilitated diffusion.