Defective acidic 2D COF-based catalysts for boosting the performance of polyoxymethylene diethyl ether synthesis under mild conditions

Abstract

Polyoxymethylene diethyl ethers (PODEE_n) are oxygenated fuel additives with high performance due to their advantageous fuel properties. PODEE_n can alleviate carbon debt as the production can utilize bioethanol and biomass syngas. Heterogeneous solid acid catalysts are desirable for an efficient PODEE_n synthesis. In this study, well-defined sulfonated phthalocyanine-containing polymers were prepared, and the physicochemical properties were analyzed, exhibiting a 2D π–π stacking structure with crystalline-amorphous mixed phases. Owing to the tuning defects of the COF framework by mixing polymerization, the accessibility of the network and the capacity of strong acid were improved for the polymeric catalyst, showing an excellent activity with trioxane (TOX) conversion of 89% and PODEE_2–8 selectivity of 87% at 80 °C under atmospheric pressure.