ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Biofuels additives derived via clay supported heteropoly acid catalyzed etherification of glycerol with t-butanol-biomass to liquid oxygenates

Magar Subhash, Dan Bahadur Pal, and Sumit Kumar Jana

Department of Chemical Engineering, Pravara Rural Engineering College, Loni, India

E-mail: sumitkrjana@bitmesra.ac.in

Received: 31 August 2021  Accepted: 21 September 2021

Abstract:

A surge in biodiesel production has recently resulted in a surplus of crude glycerol, which has harmed the process' economy. Glycerol etherification with tert-butyl alcohol in the presence of acid catalysts for the generation of ethers (monoethers, diethers, and triethers) is highly recommended by many scientists. Series of phosphotungstic acid (10–60 wt%) supported bentonite (DTP/BNT) catalysts were prepared and evaluated their performances for etherification of glycerol with t-Butanol. The properties of prepared catalysts were investigated using XRD, (FTIR) flourier transform- infrared spectroscopy, SEM, EDX, TGA/DTA, and mercury porosimeter techniques. The study reveals that increasing reaction time for maximum production of di- and tri-glycerol ethers. Catalytic activity varies with different HPA loadings. The complete conversion of glycerol was obtained, and the selectivity of di- and tri- glycerol ethers was highest (26%) at 110 °C using 40% DTP/BNT catalysts. It is observed that the increase in DTP from 10 to 40% favours an increase in glycerol conversion from 11.52 to 100% with the selectivity of di- and tri-ethers to 26%.

Keywords: Biofuel; Glycerol; Solid acid catalyst; Phosphotungstic acid; Bentonite; Etherification

Full paper is available at www.springerlink.com.

DOI: 10.1007/s11696-021-01896-1

Chemical Papers 76 (2) 775–784 (2022)