WVOx bi-metal oxides supported on the cost-effective industrial mesoprous Al2O3, SiO2, active carbon (AC), and TiO2–Al2O3 with different specific surface areas (WVO/Al2O3, WVO/SiO2, WVO/AC, and WVO/TiO2–Al2O3) were designed and prepared through co-impregnation method for large-scale bio-glycerol dehydration to acrolein. The XRD, BET, SEM–EDS, XPS, and NH3-TPD characterization results revealed the WO3–VOx (V4+/V5+) species existed with better dispersion, lower molar ratio of V4+/V5+, and enhanced strength of surface acid sites on the developed mesoporous TiO2–Al2O3 in comparison with that on the mesoporous Al2O3, SiO2, and AC, demonstrating strong interaction of WO3–VOx species with the TiO2–Al2O3 support and accounting for the acrolein selectivity over catalysts following the order of WVO/TiO2–Al2O3 (75.8%) > WVO/AC (71.2%) > WVO/SiO2 (55.3%) > WVO/Al2O3 (42.8%). Over the WVO/TiO2–Al2O3, gas-glycerol conversion reached above 97.0% with acrolein selectivity of about 75.0% under the gas hourly space velocity (GHSV) of 120–360 h−1, and maintained an improved catalytic stability.
Graphical Abstract
The acrolein selectivity over the prepared catalysts followed the order of WVO/TiO2–Al2O3 > WVO/AC > WVO/SiO2 > WVO/Al2O3, Among them, the WVO/TiO2–Al2O3 catalyst demonstrated a low V4+/V5+ ratio, surface acid sites, and exceptional catalytic performance with a gas-glycerol conversion rate of 97.2% and an acrolein selectivity of 75.8%. Even after continuous reaction for 16 h, both gas-glycerol conversion and acrolein selectivity remained above 75% and 90%, respectively. This study presents a remarkable advancement in the development of industrial catalysts with outstanding performance in terms of efficiency, stability, and cost-effectiveness. Moreover, this catalyst shows great promise for its utilization in acrolein synthesis via glycerol dehydration.