Porous solids having surface area of at least 5 square meters per gram are reduced to smaller particle size by explosive fragmentation. Exemplary disclosure concerns aluminosilicate zeolites in extremely finely divided form prepared by detonation of crystalline zeolites having adsorbed therein explosive compounds and compositions. In one particular embodiment, finely divided zeolite catalyst is supplied to the reactants and energy is furnished to the system by detonation of explosive-loaded crystalline zeolites within the reaction mixture. In addition, the products of detonation may afford reactants. 5 Claims, No Drawings
Porous ceramic particles can be fragmented by generating a gas inside the pores at a sufficient pressure to cause the particles to be fragmented. The preferred way of generating the pressure is by immersing the particles in a liquid that at ambient temperatures and pressures is a gas until the liquid is absorbed into the pores and thereafter rapidly changing the conditions such that the liquid becomes a gas resulting in explosive fragmentation of the ceramic particles.
