Adsorption of Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether on Hydrophobic Molecular Sieves

The use of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) as a gasoline additive has resulted in serious environmental problems following spills and leaks, primarily due to MTBE's high solubility in water. Remediation technologies have involved air stripping, advanced oxidation, and sorption on granular activated carbons (GAC). In this study, liquid phase sorption on hydrophobic molecular sieves was carried out over a wide range of concentrations of MTBE in water. It was shown that several molecular sieve zeolites significantly outperformed the GAC used as a control, especially in the µg/L concentration range. Silicalite-1, which had the greatest SiO₂/Al₂O₃ ratio and the greatest framework density of the zeolites tested, was the best performer in the low concentration range.