This review explores the potential of pillared bentonite materials as solid acid catalysts for synthesizing diethyl ether, a promising renewable energy source. Diethyl ether offers numerous environmental benefits over fossil fuels, such as lower emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and carbon oxides (COx) gases and enhanced fuel properties, like high volatility and low flash point. Generally, the synthesis of diethyl ether employs homogeneous acid catalysts, which pose environmental impacts and operational challenges. This review discusses bentonite, a naturally occurring alumina silicate, as a heterogeneous acid catalyst due to its significant cation exchange capacity, porosity, and ability to undergo modifications such as pillarization. Pillarization involves intercalating polyhydroxy cations into the bentonite structure, enhancing surface area, acidity, and thermal stability. Despite the potential advantages, challenges remain in optimizing the yield and selectivity of diethyl ether production using pillared bentonite. The review highlights the need for further research using various metal oxides in the pillarization process to enhance surface properties and acidity characteristics, thereby improving the catalytic performance of bentonite for the synthesis of diethyl ether. This development could lead to more efficient, environmentally friendly synthesis processes, aligning with sustainable energy goals.

지구 온난화, 석유고갈, 환경오염에 대한 해결 방안으로 수송부분에서 국제적으로 바이오연 료에 관한 연구가 활발하게 이루어지고 있다. 그 중 바이오디젤은 석유계 디젤과 비교해 이산화탄소 및 대기오염 물질 배출이 적고 세탄가가 높은 장점을 가지고 있다. 현재 국내 바이오디젤 수요는 지속적으로 증가하고 있으나 원료부족으로 인해 수입의존도가 커지고 있는 상황이다. 이러한 문제를 해결하기 위해 본 연구는 현재 사용되지 않는 음폐유(약 33 % 유리지방 산 함유)를 Amberlyst-15 촉매가 이용한 에스테르화 반응을 통해 바이오디젤 원료로서 활용가능성을 확인 하였다. 다양한 반응 조건의 영향을 조사하기 위한 실험을 수행한 결과 반응온도 383 K에서 97.62 %의 전환 율을 얻었으며, 반응속도는 353 K에서 373 K로 증가 할 때 최대 1.99 배까지 상승하였다. 또한 동역학 적 결과를 이용하여 29.75 kJ/mol의 활성화 에너지를 확인하여 선행연구에서 연구된 타 고체촉매에 비 해 에스테르화반응에 Amberlyst-15 더 적합함을 확인하였다. 그리고 메탄올 몰 비가 증가함에 따라 최 대 91.43 %의 반응 전환율을 확인하였고, 촉매량 영향의 경우 0 wt%에서 20 wt%까지 증가시킨 결과 반응 전환율이 43.78 %에서 94.62 %까지, 초기 반응 속도는 1.1∼1.4 배로 상승하는 것을 확인하였 다. 교반속도의 경우 100∼900 rpm의 조건에 따라 실험을 수행하였으나 반응 전환율에는 큰 영향을 주 지 않음을 확인하였고 반응 시간에 따른 영향의 경우 240 분 까지 산가 감소를 보이다가 300 분이 지 나면서부터 산가가 상승하는 결과를 가져왔다. 그리고 위 실험들을 통해 도출된 최적 조건을 적용하여 음폐유 에스테르화 반응에 적용하였고 그 결과 반응시간 60 분에서 음폐유와 모사 폐유지간의 13 %의 반응 전환율 차이를 보였으나 최종 240 분 반응 전환율은 모사 폐유지 98.12 %, 음폐유는 97.62 %로 거의 유사한 결과를 얻었다.

Esterification reaction between succinic acid and 1,4-butanediol was kinetically investigated in the presence of monobutyl tinoxide catalysts at 150~190℃. The reaction rates measured by the amount of distilled water from the reaction vessel. The esterification reaction was carried out under the first order conditions with respect to the concentration of reactants, respectively. The overall reaction order was 2nd. The linear relationship was shown between apparent reaction rate constant and reciprocal absolute temperature. By the Arrhenius plot the activation energy have been calculated as 87.567 kJ/mol under monobutyl tinoxide catalyst and also apparent reaction rate constant, k' was found to obey first kinetics with respect to the concentration of catalyst.

A synthesis of Dimer acid was studied from a tall oil fatty acid. Catalytic activity measured as reactant conversion in a autoclave reactor increase in accordance with the acidity. The optimization of process conditions were tested by an experimental design method. Optimization synthetic conditions of dimer acid and were reaction of tall oil fatty acid during 2 hour at 250℃, used of 7.3 wt% active clay and 1.2~1.4wt% water, and found reation pressure 8~9Kg/cm2. The maximum conversion rate was researched 74~76%.

Conventional alkaline catalytic procedure, including sodium methoxide-methanol N, N, N', N'-tetramethyl guanidine-methanol, and acid-catalytic methods of BF3-methanol and HCI-methanol, have been applied for preparing methyl esters from the triacylglycerols of Trichosanthes kirilowiil seeds containing conjugated trienoic acids. The alkaline catalytic methods produce the methyl esters quantitatively without isomerization of the conjugated trienoic acids, but the acid-catalytic ones destroy almost the molecules of conjugated trienoic acids during transesterification of the triacylglycerols although the molar ratios of monoenoic and dienoic acids (non-conjugated) to saturated acids are in good agreement with those obtained from the alkaline methods.

In this study, we devised a regeneration process for deactivated catalyst which used in SCR denitrification facility using sulfuric acid. Catalyst regeneration process using sulfuric acid showed the recovery of the activity of waste catalyst over 80% comparison with new catalyst, and we optimized operating condition through control sulfuric acid concentration and regeneration time. The activity recovery ratio of waste catalyst was revealed at 0.5 M sulfuric acid in regeneration solution, but for the case of higher than 2.5 M of H2SO4 concentration, activity recovery high hest ratio was decreased owing to the elution of active compounds from the catalyst surface. The eluted active compounds were increased for the case of longer regeneration time and higher sulfuric acid concentration. Sulfuric acid concentration and regeneration time were main operating factors in regeneration of waste catalyst. But, the conditions of waste catalyst are affected by the boiler and SCR operating conditions and preliminary tests are needed to check the waste catalyst and decide the regeneration method and process.

Since biodiesel as bioenergy is defined as ester compounds formed by esterification of animal/vegetable oils, in this study three vegetable cooking oils (market, waste and refined waste ones) were esterified by reactions of alkali catalyst and immobilized enzyme. The fatty acid composition of the formed ester compounds was analyzed to investigate the feasibility of biodiesel production. By lipolysis (i.e, hydrolysis of Triglyceride (TG)), all three vegetable oils used in this study were found to produce Diglyceride (DG), Monoglyceride (MD) and Fatty acid ethylester (FAEE). However, the amount of produced FAEE (which can be used as an energy source) was in the increasing order of market cooking oil, waste one and refined waste one. With NaOH catalyst, FAEE was produced about 24.92, 17.63 and 11.31 % for the respective oils while adding Lipozyme TL produced FAEE about 43.54, 38.16 and 24.47 %, respectively. This indicates that enzyme catalyst is more effective than alkali one for transesterification. In addition, it was found that the composition of fatty acids produced by hydrolysis of TG was unchanged with alkali and immobilized enzyme reactions. Thus it can be expected that stable conditions remain in the course of mixing with gasoline whose composition is similar to that of the fatty acids.