Issue 16, 2024

Bifunctional Au–Sn-SiO2 catalysts promote the direct upgrading of glycerol to methyl lactate

Abstract

Valuable alkyl lactates can be obtained from (waste) glycerol, through a two-step process that entails (i) the oxidation of glycerol to dihydroxyacetone (DHA) catalyzed by support Au nanoparticles and (ii) a rearrangement of DHA with an alcohol effectively catalyzed by Sn-based heterogeneous catalysts. To solve selectivity and processing issues we propose to run the process as a cascade reaction, in one step, and with a single bifunctional catalyst. Tackling the challenge associated with the preparation of such bifunctional catalysts, here, an aerosol-assisted sol–gel route is exploited. The catalysts feature small Au nanoparticles (3–4 nm) embedded at the surface of mesoporous Sn-doped silica microspheres. The preparation successfully leads to insert both active sites in their most active forms, and in close proximity. With the bifunctional catalysts, the yield for the final product of the cascade reaction (methyl lactate) is higher than the DHA yield when only the first reaction is carried out. This highlights a beneficial substrate channeling effect which alleviates side reactions. Interestingly, the bifunctional catalysts also markedly outcompeted mechanical mixtures of the corresponding monofunctional Au- and Sn-based catalysts. Thus, the spatial proximity between the two active sites in bifunctional catalysts is identified as a key to stir the cascade reaction towards high lactate yield.

Graphical abstract: Bifunctional Au–Sn-SiO2 catalysts promote the direct upgrading of glycerol to methyl lactate

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
20 Dec 2023
Accepted
26 Mar 2024
First published
27 Mar 2024

Nanoscale, 2024,16, 7988-8001

Bifunctional Au–Sn-SiO2 catalysts promote the direct upgrading of glycerol to methyl lactate

M. Van der Verren, A. Corrias, V. Vykoukal, A. Styskalik, C. Aprile and D. P. Debecker, Nanoscale, 2024, 16, 7988 DOI: 10.1039/D3NR06518A

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