One-pot synthesis of MoO3-ZrO2 solid acid catalyst for solvent-free solketal production from glycerol.

• A series of MoO 3 -ZrO 2 solid acid catalysts were obtained for acetalization of glycerol. • The Mo species existed as highly dispersed state in MoO 3 -ZrO 2 materials. • The formation of Brønsted and Lewis acid sites was confirmed by the DFT calculations. • The 20 %-MoO 3 -ZrO 2 catalyst exhibited the optimal catalytic performance. • The MoO 3 -ZrO 2 catalyst showed excellent universality and reusability in acetalization reaction. Glycerol acetalization to solketal is a promising method of increasing the additional value of glycerol, which is a by-product in biodiesel industry. In this work, a series of mesoporous x-MoO 3 -ZrO 2 (x = Mo/Zr) solid acid catalysts with controllable Mo contents were designed and synthesized for the acetalization of glycerol. As important influence factors of solid acid catalysts, the mesoporous structure and existential state of Mo species were systematically investigated. Results show that Mo species were introduced as planned and existed in a homogeneously dispersed state in MoO 3 -ZrO 2 materials. The acidic properties of MoO 3 -ZrO 2 were explored through NH 3 -TPD and pyridine-chemisorbed FT-IR spectroscopy, and the formation of Brønsted and Lewis acid sites was confirmed by density functional theory calculations. Given their excellent acidity, MoO 3 -ZrO 2 catalysts were employed for the acetal reaction of glycerol. Among the tested catalysts, the 20 %-MoO 3 -ZrO 2 catalyst exhibited the optimal catalytic performance and reusability, achieving a conversion of 89 % for glycerol and a selectivity of 97 % for solketal. Consequently, MoO 3 -ZrO 2 is a green solid acid catalyst with promising applications in solvent-free solketal production from glycerol. [Display omitted] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]