Kinetic modeling, thermodynamic, and mass-transfer studies of gas-phase glycerol dehydration to acrolein over supported silicotungstic acid catalyst

The kinetics of gas-phase glycerol dehydration in a packed-bed reactor over a highly active and stable supported silicotungstic acid catalyst with zirconium oxide and nanosized aluminum oxide (30HZ-20A) was investigated. The kinetic study is based on the optimal reaction conditions determined by response surface methodology. The reaction rate followed first-order kinetics with the activation energy and frequency factor, E = 27.5 kJ/mol and A = 5.35 × 10⁵ s^-1, respectively. Based on thermodynamic analysis, the values of ΔH° and ΔS° of the endothermic reaction were 14.70 and 0.09 kJ/(mol K), respectively, and ΔG° =-12.12 kJ/mol. The mass-transfer analysis revealed the pellet sizes of d_p < 1 μm proceeded under reaction-limiting conditions. Experimental results confirmed high efficacy of the tested catalyst due to unity effectiveness factor and very low Thiele modulus.