Dehydration Isopropyl Alcohol to Diisopropyl Ether over Molybdenum Phosphide Pillared Bentonite

Abstract

Emissions from gasoline are one of the contributors to air pollution. Diisopropyl ether (DIPE) is an alternative oxygenate additive that can improve gasoline quality, minimizing CO and hydrocarbon gas emissions during combustion. However, there are very few studies on the use of pillared bentonite-based catalysts for DIPE production. This study aims to produce DIPE via dehydration of isopropyl alcohol using a molybdenum phosphide pillared bentonite (MoP-Bentonite) catalyst. The effect of Mo6+ metal concentration on the catalytic activity of isopropyl alcohol dehydration was also investigated. The catalyst that gives the highest DIPE yield will be analyzed by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscope-Energy Dispersive X-Ray (SEM-EDX), Gas Sorption Analyzer (GSA), and total acidity using the gravimetric method. In addition, the dehydration product will be analyzed by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS). The results showed that MoP has been successfully pillared into bentonite and showed an increase in surface area, acidity, and catalytic activity. The highest yield of DIPE was obtained using a 4 mEq/g MoP-Bentonite catalyst with a DIPE yield of 64.5%.