Synthesis and E-metric Studies of an Economically Viable Heterogeneous Acid Catalyst for Production and Upscaling of Solketal

Abstract

Continuous upsurge of biodiesel production globally makes valorizing waste glycerol from the biodiesel industry the best option to create a new market and enhance the durability of biodiesel production. Solketal, a fuel additive that can be synthesized from biowaste glycerol, is a highly desirable chemical in various industries. This work synthesized a robust and economically viable solid heterogeneous acid catalyst SO42-/CoAl2O4-TiO2. It is very efficient for solketal synthesis under conventional heating. Various reactions affecting parameters, viz., 1:10 molar ratio of glycerol to acetone, 58 °C reaction temperature, and reaction duration of 120 min with 3 wt % of catalyst dose, were optimized by varying one variable at a time. The synthesized catalyst showed an excellent selectivity (99%) for the synthesis of solketal, with a yield of 98% and 99% conversion of glycerol to solketal. Green metrics, like E-factor (0.084), PMI (1.87), and CE (0.66), were also studied, which show that solketal production is sustainable and environmentally friendly. The catalyst endurance capacity was intact up to the sixth cycle, which makes it more efficient for widespread applications on an industrial scale. © 2024 American Chemical Society.