Preparation of AgCeY Zeolite Using Microwave Irradiation and Its Adsorptive Desulfurization Performance

The AgCeY zeolite was successfully prepared via the microwave-assisted liquid ion exchange method and characterized by XRD, BET, XPS and Py–FTIR techniques. The effects of the preparation conditions, the equilibriumisothermal adsorption, kinetics, and thermodynamics were studied. The AgCeY zeolite that was ion-exchanged under conditions covering a microwave irradiation time of 20 min, a microwave power of 400 W, and a microwave temperature of 70 °C, exhibited the best adsorptive desulfurization performance. The AgCeY zeolite prepared via the microwave-assisted irradiation process exhibited much higher Lewis acidity than that prepared via the conventional ion exchange method, which had contributed to its enhanced desulfurization performance. The adsorption of thiophene (TP) and benzothiophene (BT) on the AgCeY zeolite can be represented by the Langmuir model and the kinetics can be well described by the pseudo-?rstorder model, the pseudo-second-order model or the Langmuir model. The adsorption of TP and BT on the AgCeY zeolite is mass transfer controlled and involves a spontaneous exothermic process.