Selective oxidation of glycerol to lactic acid under acidic conditions using AuPd/TiO2 catalyst

The selective oxidation of glycerol was investigated using AuPd/TiO2 as the catalyst in the presence of AlCl3, and lactic acid was obtained as the predominant product. It was demonstrated that AuPd/TiO2 and AlCl3 played synergistic roles in the production of lactic acid. The possible reaction pathway was proposed, in which glycerol was first oxidized to glyceraldehyde and dihydroxyacetone, catalysed by AuPd/TiO2, followed by the formation of lactic acid, catalyzed by AlCl3.