Question

Explain, in your own words and in one concise paragraph, what a “zeolite” is and how it works.

Answer 1

Zeolites are sodium aluminium silicates represented by the formula (NaR) . Their melting points are higher.

Their open cage like structure allows many molecules to be trapped inside it. They can exchange positively charged ions for metal ions which get trapped in them . Small molecules can pass through while retaining large molecules. Natural zeolites are different from synthetic zeolites since synthetic zeolites are prepared for trapping molecules of given size.