Vanadium
phosphorus oxide (VPO) catalysts were developed for the
aldol condensation of methyl acetate (MeOAC) with formaldehyde (HCHO)
to methyl acrylate (MA). The influence of P/V ratio on catalytic activity
and selectivity was revealed and optimized with a fixed bed reactor.
The controllable preparation of VPO catalyst was reached, and the
influence of carrier gas on the resistance of carbon deposition was
also systematically investigated. Response surface methodology (RSM)
with three independent variables of molar ratio of MeOAC to HCHO,
space velocity, and reaction temperature was employed to optimize
MA yield with VPO catalysts. The high value of “R-squared” presented a reasonable correlation of regression
model to the experimental data. Lastly, the kinetics of aldol condensation
to produce MA over VPO catalyst was studied.