Novel cerium-tungsten-titanium-based catalyst for an efficient oxidative desulfurization material in fuel oil under a laboratory-scale setup

Desulfurization technology plays an essential role in the removal of sulfur existing in raw fuel for an immediate aversion of the formation of acid rain and sulfate particulate matters that endanger the environment and public health. In this study, CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst was synthesized by sol-gel method and applied in the oxidative desulfurization of fuel oil using H2O2 as oxidizing agent. The WOx loading (0.10-0.40 mol fraction) was varied, and the CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst was characterized by energy-dispersive X-ray and scanning electron microscopy. The effect of different parameters such as catalyst dosage (0.1-0.5 g), oxidation time (10-40 min) and quantity of phase transfer agent dosage (0.1-0.5 g) on the dibenzothiophene conversion was investigated. Results show that increasing the oxidation temperature, dosage of both catalyst and phase transfer agent, and oxidation time would result in higher dibenzothiophene conversion from refractory fuel oil. The oxidative desulfurization of fuel oil using CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst exhibited a 100% dibenzothiophene conversion at temperature of 60 oC, reaction time of 30 min, dosage of catalyst at 0.2 g and phase transfer agent at 0.1 g. Results showed the mole fraction of 0.3 W in CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst provided the highest efficiency in dibenzothiophene conversion, which is essential in industrial applications specifically for oxidative desulfurization of fuel oil. The results in this research support the novel application of the CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst in producing clean fuels in conjunction with the oxidative desulfurization process. Therefore, the catalyst synthesis in this study provides a prospective usability for future industrial applications in the aspect of desulfurization. The present work demonstrates the feasibility of using CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst in oxidative desulfurization to generate desulfurized fuel oil, which is a more economical approach since the process operates at lower temperature and pressure.

Automated summary

Desulfurization technology is important for removing sulfur from fuel, and the CeO2-WOx-TiO2 catalyst synthesized in this study showed promising results in oxidative desulfurization of fuel oil at lower temperature and pressure.