Highly active and durable WO/AlO catalysts for gas-phase dehydration of polyols.

Gas-phase glycerol dehydration over WO/AlO catalysts was investigated. WO loading on γ-AlO significantly affected the yield of acrolein and the catalyst with 20 wt% WO loading showed the highest activity. The WO/AlO catalyst with 20 wt% WO loading showed higher activity and durability than the other supported WO catalysts and zeolites. The number of Brønsted acid sites and mesopores of the WO/AlO catalyst did not decrease after the reaction, suggesting that glycerol has continuous access to Brønsted acid sites inside the mesopores of WO/AlO, thereby sustaining a high rate of formation of acrolein. Dehydration under O flow further increased the durability of the WO/AlO catalyst, enabling the sustainable formation of acrolein. In addition, the WO/AlO catalyst with 20 wt% WO loading showed high activity for the dehydration of various polyols to afford the corresponding products in high yield.