Scientists from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst applied the method of spectroscopy and quantum mechanical modeling to understand the processes underlying the formation of zeolite crystals - minerals that are actively used as catalysts and adsorbents. Zeolite crystals are used, among the other things, for refining petroleum into gasoline and biomass into biofuel. They are considered to be the most widely used catalysts on the planet, therefore, the discovery of the mechanisms of their formation is of great interest for the chemical industry.

Scientists have found a reliable method of studying the formation of zeolite crystals and applied it in an experiment.

Not so long ago, the created method of Raman spectroscopy allowed scientists to discover a new type of nanoblocks in the composition of zeolites - tricyclic rings consisting of three bridges silicon – oxygen – silicon. Scientists have shown not only the presence of this structure, but also calculated its main parameters, including the angle between atoms and position in space.

The discovery article was published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.