The random lamellae of the synthetic CP were synthesized with a hydrothermal approach using o-Phenylenediamine (OPD) as a modifier. The decreases in the order degree of the CP synthesized in the presence of the OPD resulted from the loss of long-range order in a certain direction. Subsequently, the ultrasonic treatment and washing were conducive to further facilitate the disordered arrangements of its lamellae. The possible promotion mechanism regarding the nucleation and growth behaviors of the sol-gel particles was proposed. The fractal evolutions of the aluminosilicate species with crystallization time implied that the aluminosilicate species became gradually smooth to rough during the crystallization procedures since the amorphous structures transformed into flower-like morphologies. Their gas adsorption and separation performances indicated that the adsorption capacity of CO2 at 273 K reached up to 2.14 mmol·g-1 at 1 bar, and the selective factor (CO2/CH4) up to 3.4, much higher than that of the CPs synthesized without additive OPD. The breakthrough experiments displayed a longer breakthrough time and enhancement of CO2 uptake, showing better performance for CO2/CH4 separation. The cycling test further highlighted their efficiency for CO2/CH4 separation.
Keywords: CH4/CO2 separation; clinoptilolites; fractal; o-Phenylenediamine; random lamellae.