Preparation of sulfated alumina supported on mesoporous MCM-41 silica and its application in esterification

Abstract New types of mesoporous SA/MCM-41 solid acid catalysts were prepared by loading sulfated alumina (SA) on MCM-41. The prepared catalysts were characterized by XRD, IR, N 2 physisorption, elemental analysis, FT-IR of adsorbed pyridine and NH 3 -TPD. The esterification of acetic acid with n -butanol and citric acid with n -butanol were used as model reactions to test the catalytic activities and reusability of the SA/MCM-41 solid acid catalysts. Compared with SA catalyst, SA/MCM-41 catalysts exhibited higher catalytic performances, which were attributed to their high BET surface area and large pore volume. Moreover, 20SA/MCM-41 solid acid catalyst showed excellent reusability in both esterifications.