Polyoxometalate-based ionic liquid supported on graphite carbon induced solvent-free ultra-deep oxidative desulfurization of model fuels

A supported heterogeneous catalyst with polyoxometalate-based ionic liquid (POM-IL) [N-(3-sulfonatepropyl)-pyridinium] 3 PMo 12 O 40 ([PSPy]PMo) served as active component was prepared and graphite carbon (GC) with layer structure was used as support. Characterizations of the supported catalyst by FT-IR, Raman, XRD, XPS and TEM confirmed that IL was immobilized on GC successfully and the structure was retained after the hydrothermal impregnation method. The as-prepared catalyst exhibited high catalytic performance in the solvent-free oxidative desulfurization system. Various of reaction conditions were investigated and the removal of dibenzothiophene reached 100% under the optimum conditions. Wettability experiments and kinetics studies were taken to better understand the oxidation reactions. In addition, the suggested mechanism was given with the help of Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometer analysis. Moreover, the supported catalyst had a good recyclability, which made it have a promising prospect for industrial application.