Efficient Synthesis of Solketal from Glycerol and Acetone Catalyzed by FeCl3 /γ‐Al2O3

Spherical γ-Al₂O₃ was prepared as catalyst carrier by sol-gel method, and FeCl₃/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst was obtained by simple impregnation for efficient catalytic synthesis of Solketal from glycerol and acetone. The results showed that the FeCl₃/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst was easy to be recycled and reused six times.

Abstract

The porous spherical alumina (γ-Al₂O₃) as catalyst support was prepared by sol-gel method, and FeCl₃/γ-Al₂O₃ materials were prepared by impregnation method. The FeCl₃/γ-Al₂O₃ materials were used as catalyst in the Solketal production process by acetalization of acetone and glycerol, showing considerable catalytic performance. When the molar ratio of glycerol and acetone was 1 : 10, 0.2 mol% FeCl₃/γ-Al₂O₃ was used as the catalyst, and the reaction was carried out at 25 °C for 30 min, the conversion of glycerol was 99.89 %, the selectivity of Solketal was 98.36 %, and the yield of Solketal reached 98.25 %. The mechanism is due to the spherical γ-Al₂O₃ support has high thermal stability, large specific surface area, and rich pore structure, encouraging abundant active sites and high catalytic activity of FeCl₃ for the acetalization reaction. Thereafter, the experimental results prove that the prepared FeCl₃/γ-Al₂O₃ catalyst can be easily recovered and reused many times, indicating its great value for large-scale research and application in the future.

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