Heterogenization of homogenous oxidative desulfurization reaction on graphene-like boron nitride with a peroxomolybdate ionic liquid

Abstract

A peroxomolybdate ionic liquid (PMo IL) was synthesized and further immobilized on graphene-like hexagonal boron nitride (PMo IL/G-h-BN). Compared with the homogenous PMo IL, the heterogeneous catalyst presented an enhanced catalytic and recyclable performance in oxidative desulfurization. The influence of different desulfurization systems, different carriers and reaction conditions indicated that the PMo IL/G-h-BN exhibited a good catalytic activity with hydrogen peroxide as the oxidant in oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT). The catalytic activity of PMo IL/G-h-BN shows a superior performance compared to those of other carriers supported with PMo IL catalysts, reaching 98.5% sulfur removal on DBT. This G-h-BN heterogenization of the IL strategy not only reduced the usage amount of IL active species greatly, but also enhanced the recycling performance of the catalyst. The mechanism of adsorption and catalytic oxidative desulfurization was investigated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS).