Heptane adsorption in silicalite-1 : molecular dynamics simulation.

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations have been used to study the adsorption process of n-heptane molecules in silicalite-1 at 300 K. MD simulated results were compared to experimental neutron diffraction (ND) and experimental self-diffusion coefficients. The analysis of MD data indicated a packing of the adsorbed molecules around 4 mol./u.c., which is not the consequence of an enthalpic effect but of an entropic effect. The role of the n-heptane chain flexibility (cis–trans conformation) in relation with the silicalite-1 channel type (straight versus sinusoidal) was outlined and enabled to understand the mobility change arising at 4 mol./u.c., according to previous experimental results. The …