Variable temperature structural study of host-guest, zeolite-organic cation hybrid materials exhibiting low to zero thermal expansion.

The aim of this experiment is the study of the crystal structures of three host-guest, zeolite-organic cation hybrid materials as a function of temperature with the goal of obtaining zero or close to zero thermal expansion over at least part of the temperature range between 80-650 K. High quality structural data, as can be obtained on ID22 with the multianalyzer stage, are of utmost importance to determine accurately the thermal expansion coefficients and to understand the compensating effect of the organic cation on the zeolite frameworks CHA (Chabazite) and MFI (Mobil-Five), which exhibit intrinsic negative thermal expansion in the absence of cations. These data will be very useful for the design of new hybrid materials with adjustable thermal expansion properties.