Toward rational design of hierarchical beta zeolites: An overview and beyond

The ever-growing need to increase the efficiency of crude oil refining raises the prospects for utilizing advanced catalytic materials to supply increasing global demands for fine chemicals and petrochemicals. Zeolites have been used as indispensable catalysts in many commercial refining processes. Among them, zeolite beta is one of the most widely produced zeolite materials with industrial significance due to its large micropores and three-dimensional pore structures. This article discusses recent progress on hierarchical beta zeolites from various synthetic strategies. Using zeolite beta as a representative case, we provide an overview on key aspects that are applicable to different zeolites via a variety of topics, such as selection of different template materials, tailoring of mesopore sizes by base leaching, organotemplate-free synthesis of hierarchical zeolites, and selective desilication. This article concludes with a perspective on the design of scalable hierarchical zeolites that are more relevant as industrial catalysts in commercial processes.