Synthesis of a silicotungstic acid SBA-15 catalyst for selective monoglyceride production

The esterification reaction between glycerol and lauric acid was conducted in the presence of commercial Amberlyst IR-120 and synthesized silicotungstic acid (STA)/SBA-15 at 393, 413 and 433 K. The results indicated that STA/SBA-15 was more convenient than Amberlyst IR-120 by means of monoglyceride production. Higher selectivity to monoglyceride obtained in the presence of STA/SBA-15 was due to its mesoporous structure, which induced shape selectivity in favor of monoglyceride. Reaction experiments in the presence of recovered catalysts showed an increase of monoglyceride selectivity, which was due to adsorbed lauric acid inside the mesopores. The selectivity was shown to be altered towards monoglyceride by simply changing the feed ratio and applying washing procedure on the catalyst. Characterization studies conducted on recovered catalysts validated the preservation of catalyst structure and the stability of the catalyst even after utilization for 7 days.