Mo--V--Nb--O-based catalysts for low-temperature selective oxidation of C α--OH lignin model compounds

Mo-V-Nb tri-component oxide catalysts were prepared and firstly used for the selective oxidation of C α−OH lignin compounds. The catalytic performance of the composite oxides was obviously enhanced due to the synergistic effects of Mo and V elements. Mo 5− x V x O 14 phase with a variable Mo/V ratio provided suitable active sites for the oxidative dehydrogenation (ODH) of C α−OH lignin model compound. The optimized Mo-V-Nb molar composition was confirmed as Mo 0.61V 0.31Nb 0.08O x /TiO 2, which exhibited the prominent catalytic activity with the turnover frequency of 1.04×10 −3 mmol· g(cat) −1·s −1. Even at room temperature, the catalysts showed highly-efficient ODH reaction activities. The active phase for selective oxidation reaction and the inhibiting effect of α-MoO 3 phase were also discussed in the study.