Abstract
Ethylene Oxide (EO) is an essential raw material used in various consumer products like different glycol derivatives, ethoxylates, and polymers. We hydrothermally synthesize niobium oxide incorporated with mesoporous silica material (Nb/MSM), an efficient catalyst for CO
free-ethylene oxide (EO) production
partial oxidation of ethylene. The structural properties of Nb/MSM catalysts were characterized using XRD, TEM, and N
adsorption-desorption. The catalytic activity of synthesized materials in liquid phase epoxidation (LPE) of ethylene was evaluated in the presence of peracetic acid (PAA) as an oxidant to avoid the production of CO
and also minimize metal leaching. GC chromatography was used to investigate the successful production of EO, and a peak with a retention time (RT) of 9.01 min served as confirmation. Various reaction parameters
temperature, catalyst concentration, ethylene to PAA molar ratio, and solvent effect were investigated in order to optimize the reaction conditions for enhancing the ethylene conversion and selectivity for EO production. By this approach, the challenges of greenhouse gas production and metal leaching were addressed which were associated with previously reported catalysts.