LAUSR

Abstract In this study, a low-cost mesoporous sodalite (SOD) zeolite was fabricated from industrial waste lithium-silicon-fume (LSF) using sodium salt-assisted alkaline desilication followed Vacuum Ultraviolet (VUV)-initiated ROS route. A highly crystallized mesoporous SOD zeolites can be obtained after merely 4 h VUV irradiation which exhibited superior ion-exchange capability with respect to Cu(II) (Qmax = 120.48 mg/g). The experimental and characterization results showed that the addition of sodium salt (i.e., Na2CO3 and NaHCO3) could greatly promote the dissolution of LSF, and induce development of mesoporous structures in zeolite without the requirement of template. The synthesized zeolite exhibited outstanding selectivity for Cu(II), which involved ion-exchange and hydroxyl complexation, and the spent zeolite after adsorbing Cu(II) can simply be regenerated by mild chemical washing. These results suggest sodium salt-assisted alkaline desilication followed Vacuum Ultraviolet (VUV) irradiation method is an effective way to fast turn solid waste into low-cost zeolites with superior ion-exchange capacity, which can be conductive to practical remediation of metal ion from wastewater.