Abstract
Zeolite type A was prepared from Egyptian kaolin by hydrothermal treatment with alkali solution. Several samples of nickel ion exchanged zeolite were prepared ranging from 0.7 to 2.3 wt%. Hydrogenation of sunflower oil has been carried out over Ni-exchanged LTA type zeolite. The Ni-exchanged zeolite showed high promising catalytic activity, 1.36 times that of the commercial Ni/SiO
2 catalyst. Characterization of zeolites was carried by XRD analysis which showed that the crystallinity of zeolite remained without change during the ion exchange process. TEM images taken of samples after hydrogenation showed that Ni is subjected to reduction during the reaction. Raman spectroscopy was used to monitor the hydrogenation process as an alternative method for determining the unsaturation of the hydrogenated oil over the high cost and time consuming nature of the traditional chemical method.