Effect of H3PW12O40 impregnation on Sn-MCM-41 mesoporous molecular sieves and their physico-chemical properties

Si-Sn-MCM-41 (Si/Sn = 110) mesoporous molecular sieve was synthesized by hydrothermal sol–gel method using cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) as surfactant and SnCl4·5H2O as a metal source. To generate surface acidity of Si-Sn-MCM-41, 12-tungstophosphoric acid (HPWA) is impregnated on it. The acidity of HPWA loading on Sn-MCM-41 was investigated by temperature programmed desorption of NH3. The diffused reflectance spectra of ultraviolet radiation, Raman spectra, FT-IR, 29Si-MAS NMR and 31P-MAS NMR techniques revealed the intact of α-Keggin anions on Sn-MCM-41. The wide angle XRD results showed that the HPWA is well dispersed on the support. The total acidity was enhanced with increase in loading of H3PW12O40. The catalytic activity was examined in desulfurization of dibenzothiophene in vapor phase system. Among the catalysts 18% HPWA loaded Sn-MCM-41 showed good catalytic activity in desulfurization at 325 °C. The HPWA/Sn-MCM-41 are a suitable solid acid catalyst for converting organic sulfur into insoluble sulfone.