Síntese de zeólitas a partir de um resíduo sílico-aluminoso gerado na extração do lítio do espodumênio

Abstract

Lithium is one of the elements that have a high commercial interest, precisely because of its features that allow use in lithium ion batteries, medicines, alloys, among other applications. Its diverse applicability allied to obtain difficulties makes this material has a high commercial value. One of the major minerals which can extract lithium is spodumene. Industrially, the main process of obtaining the spodumene lithium is extracted via sulfuric acid. This process generates as a byproduct a lot of silico-aluminous waste that has no final destination, being mostly stored in landfills or left outdoors. They were studied in this work, different synthetic procedures seeking different zeolite structures as a way to add value to this industrial waste. This was followed based on the traditional recipe of each structure provided by the "International Zeolite Association" (IZA) modifying it with the addition of silica-alumina residue. The synthesized materials were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It was possible to synthesize zeolites MER, EDI and MOR with high crystallinity and single phase, the first being that these structures are obtained by silico-aluminous waste from the extraction of the mineral spodumene lithium. Other materials, such as LTA zeolite, were obtained, but with low crystallinity or with more than one phase present. Further optimization studies are needed.