Glycerol conversion to acetol catalyzed by aluminum-free Zr-beta zeolite: high selectivity and coke tolerance
Abstract
Zr-Beta zeolite containing exclusively Lewis acid sites (LAS) was synthesized and its catalytic performance in glycerol dehydration was compared with that of Al-Beta zeolite, which possesses both Brønsted acid sites (BAS) and LAS. Distinct differences in catalytic behavior were observed depending on the nature of the acid sites. The BAS-rich Al-Beta favored acrolein formation, whereas Zr-Beta shifted the selectivity toward acetol and acetaldehyde. These results indicate that LAS promote selective dehydration and rearrangement pathways while suppressing deeper dehydration routes. Zr-Beta also exhibited improved resistance to coke formation, with only 6% coke after 10 h of reaction. Under these conditions, glycerol conversion reached 26%, with selectivities of 52% to acetaldehyde and 46% to acetol. Reusability tests further confirmed the stability of Zr-Beta, which maintained high catalytic performance over successive cycles.
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BibTeX
@article{silva2026glycerol,
title = {{Glycerol conversion to acetol catalyzed by aluminum-free Zr-beta zeolite: high selectivity and coke tolerance}},
author = {Ariel J.T. da Silva and Marcos Júnior and Theogyna R.R.T. da Costa and Daniele Oliveira and Vinícius P.S. Caldeira and Tiago Braga and Lindiane Bieseki and Alexander Sachse and Anne G.D. Santos},
journal = {Catalysis Today},
year = {2026},
month = sep,
doi = {10.1016/j.cattod.2026.115990},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05768975v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Glycerol conversion to acetol catalyzed by aluminum-free Zr-beta zeolite: high selectivity and coke tolerance
AU - Ariel J.T. da Silva
AU - Marcos Júnior
AU - Theogyna R.R.T. da Costa
AU - Daniele Oliveira
AU - Vinícius P.S. Caldeira
AU - Tiago Braga
AU - Lindiane Bieseki
AU - Alexander Sachse
AU - Anne G.D. Santos
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/09/19
JO - Catalysis Today
DO - 10.1016/j.cattod.2026.115990
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05768975v1
AB - Zr-Beta zeolite containing exclusively Lewis acid sites (LAS) was synthesized and its catalytic performance in glycerol dehydration was compared with that of Al-Beta zeolite, which possesses both Brønsted acid sites (BAS) and LAS. Distinct differences in catalytic behavior were observed depending on the nature of the acid sites. The BAS-rich Al-Beta favored acrolein formation, whereas Zr-Beta shifted the selectivity toward acetol and acetaldehyde. These results indicate that LAS promote selective dehydration and rearrangement pathways while suppressing deeper dehydration routes. Zr-Beta also exhibited improved resistance to coke formation, with only 6% coke after 10 h of reaction. Under these conditions, glycerol conversion reached 26%, with selectivities of 52% to acetaldehyde and 46% to acetol. Reusability tests further confirmed the stability of Zr-Beta, which maintained high catalytic performance over successive cycles.
SN - 0920-5861
ER -