Visualization of the “First Step” in Zeolite Crystallization: Discovery of a New Principle Where the Ordering of Atomic “Twists” Precedes Crystallization
The research group led by Assistant Professor Sho Ninomiya and Professor Maiko Nishibori at the International Center for Synchrotron Radiation Innovation Smart (SRIS), Tohoku University, closely tracked the crystallization process of MWW-type zeolites using oxygen 1s X-ray emission spectroscopy (O 1s XES).
As a result, they found that even before the appearance of crystals, the torsion angle of the O–Si–O–Si linkages in the silicate framework begins to gradually become ordered from a disordered state. Furthermore, this ordering occurs prior to the emergence of long-range order detectable by X-ray diffraction and also progresses ahead of the substantial incorporation of iron (Fe) into the framework.
Tohoku University Press Release (external link):
https://www.tohoku.ac.jp/japanese/2026/05/press20260520-02-zeolite.html
