Chemistry of dawsonites and application in catalysis

Identifier:  TDX:366

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TDX366

Authors:  Stoica, Georgiana

Abstract:
Dawsonites are crystalline minerals generally present in nature as sodium aluminum carbonate hydroxide, NaAlCO3(OH)2. Besides the mineral, a variety of compositions with dawsonite-type structure have been synthesized by changing the nature of sodium or aluminum cations. The work described in this thesis focuses on the chemistry of dawsonite-type compounds including: the stability of dawsonites in aqueous media at mild conditions; the achievement of dawsonite-hydrotalcite nanostructured composites starting from the hydrotalcite; and the memory property of dawsonite-derived aluminas. The final goal is to evaluate the as-synthesized or derived dawsonite-materials in selected catalytic reactions. These materials were efficient or even more active than catalysts in the state-of-the-art in basic (dimethyl carbonate production by transesterification of ethylene carbonate with methanol) and redox (alkene epoxidation of cyclooctene with hydrogen peroxide) reactions. The above findings could have further practical implications as activated dawsonites open a new window of research with potential applications as catalysts, adsorbents, and additives.