The invention relates to methods of production of a silica concentrate from geothermal fluids. More particularly, although not exclusively, the invention relates to the production of a colloidal silica concentrate, colloidal silica or precipitated silica from high temperature geothermal fluids by ultrafiltration to produce size-specific silica colloids and step-wise concentration of silica to avoid precipitation or gelling.

Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a reactive nano silicate, which can comprise a silica/acid composite comprising reactive functional groups activated by an intramolecular disturber. The reactive functional groups can comprise at least one of SiH, SiOH, silazane, durazane, polysilazane, and spiro silazane. The intramolecular disturber can comprise at least one of Fe.sub.2O.sub.3, Xe.sub.2O, SnO.sub.2, Al.sub.2O.sub.3, SiO.sub.2, TiO.sub.2, or a rare earth element oxide.

Calcium hydroxide nanoparticles (Ca(OH).sub.2NPs) synthesized using carob pulp extract may be hexagonal nanoparticles with a diameter ranging from about 31.22 nm to about 81.22 nm. The Ca(OH).sub.2NPs may be synthesized by heating ethylene glycol, adding calcium hydroxide to the ethylene glycol to provide a first mixture, heating the first mixture, adding a carob pulp aqueous extract to the first mixture to form a second mixture, heating the second mixture, adding sodium hydroxide (NaOH) to the second mixture to form a third mixture, heating the third mixture, resting the third mixture at room temperature after heating, centrifuging the third mixture, collecting a colloid sediment, extracting any unwanted contaminants from the colloid sediment, and drying the colloid sediment to obtain Ca(OH).sub.2NPs.

The present invention relates to a new process for synthesising a crystalline material comprising structure Beta zeolite in nanocrystalline form, and which can comprise at least the following steps: (i) preparing a mixture comprising at least one source of water, at least one source of a tetravalent element Y, at least one source of a trivalent element X, at least one source of an alkali cation or alkaline earth metal cation (A), and at least one organic molecule selected from a monocyclic quaternary ammonium R.sub.1R.sub.2CycloN.sup.+, and a quaternary ammonium substituted with a cycloalkyl group R.sub.3R.sub.4R.sub.5R.sub.6N.sup.+. The molar composition of the mixture is: n X.sub.2O.sub.3:YO.sub.2:a A:m OSDA1:z H.sub.2O; ii) crystallising the mixture; and iii) recovering the crystalline material.

The present application relates to a porous material and preparation methods thereof, and anodes and devices including the same. The porous material provided by the present application includes a material of the formula Si.sub.aM.sub.bO.sub.x, wherein the ratio of x to a is about 0.6 to about 1.5, and the ratio of a to b is about 8 to about 10,000, wherein M includes at least one selected from the group consisting of Al, Si, P, Mg, Ti and Zr. The anode and an electrochemical device including the porous material exhibit higher rate performance, higher first coulombic efficiency, higher cycle stability and lower cycle expansion ratio.

A method of preparing metal nanoparticles using a fungal extract includes providing an aqueous solution including a metal salt; and combining the fungal extract with the aqueous metal salt solution to produce the metal nanoparticles. The fungal extract can be an aqueous extract of the manglicolous fungi The metal salt can be copper sulfate (CuSO.sub.4) and the metal nanoparticles can be copper nanoparticles. The metal nanoparticles can have a mean diameter in the range of from about 5 nm to about 100 nm. The copper nanoparticles can be used as an antimicrobial agent.

Adsorbent particle includes iron oxyhydroxide as a main component, wherein 90% or more of volume of particle is constituted of a granular crystal having a crystal grain size of 20 nm or less or a columnar crystal having a width of 10 nm or less and length of 30 nm or less and particle has BET specific surface area of 250 m.sup.2/g or more. Above adsorbent particle is produced by a method including a step of generating iron oxyhydroxide by adding base represented by YOH (wherein Y represents a monovalent atom or atomic group) to solution including at least one selected from trivalent iron compounds represented by FeX.sub.3 (wherein X represents a monovalent atom or atomic group other than OH) while adjusting pH to pH 3 to 6, wherein solution has total concentration of FeX.sub.3, YOH and other electrolytes of 10% by mass or more at completion of the step.

Nanostructured aluminosilicates including aluminosilicate nanorods are formed by heating a geopolymer resin containing up to about 90 mol % water in a closed container at a temperature between about 70 C. and about 200 C. for a length of time up to about one week to yield a first material including the aluminosilicate nanorods. The aluminosilicate nanorods have an average width of between about 5 nm and about 30 or between about 5 nm and about 60 nm or between about 5 nm and about 100 nm, and a majority of the aluminosilicate nanorods have an aspect ratio between about 2 and about 100.

A composite having a composition expressed by A.sub.nX.sub.yM.sub.m wherein, A represents a lanthanoid that is in a trivalent state at least partially or entirely, X represents an element that is a Group-2 element in the periodic table selected from the group consisting of Ca, Sr, and Ba, or a lanthanoid that is different from A, M represents an element that is a Group-1 element in the periodic table, a Group-2 element selected from the group consisting of Ca, Sr, and Ba, or a lanthanoid that is different from A and X, n satisfies 0<n<1, y satisfies 0<y<1, m satisfies 0m<1, and n+y+m=1.

The methods for synthesizing mordenite (MOR) zeolite crystals described herein utilize a combination of organics and produce MOR crystals with reduced size, higher Si/Al ratio, fewer stacking faults, less occluded organics in the final product, and a longer catalyst lifetime.