ZrO2/SBA-15 as an efficient catalyst for the production of γ-valerolactone from biomass-derived levulinic acid in the vapour phase at atmospheric pressure

摘要

γ-Valerolactone is a promising renewable feedstock for the production of fuels and industrial chemicals. In this work, SBA-15 supported ZrO _(2) catalysts prepared by a wet impregnation method with various ZrO _(2) loadings ranging from 10 to 30 weight% have been studied for the production of γ-valerolactone from levulinic acid via catalytic transfer hydrogenation and cyclization with isopropanol as a H-donor in the vapour phase at atmospheric pressure. Among the catalysts, 25 weight% ZrO _(2) /SBA-15 has been identified as an efficient catalyst for the transfer hydrogenation, delivering 100% conversion of levulinic acid with 93% selectivity towards γ-valerolactone. The physicochemical characteristics of these catalysts were achieved by X-ray diffraction, BET surface area, pore size distribution, UV-visible spectroscopy, temperature-programmed desorption of ammonia, SEM, TEM and ICP-OES techniques. The characterization studies divulge the presence of ZrO _(2) with well-dispersed acidic sites, enhanced surface area, and ease of accessibility for the active sites within the uniform pore channels, and these engendered the excellent catalytic performance with low molar ratios 1?:?7 (levulinic acid?:?isopropanol). Moreover, the catalyst showed sturdiness during 20 hours on-stream study.