In this work, we have reported the synthesis of a series
of heterogeneous
catalysts, viz., [HMIm]3[PW12O40]@MOF-Fe,
[HMIm]3[PMo12O40]@MOF-Fe, and
[HMIm]4[SiW12O40]@MOF-Fe, by
a simple impregnation method. The catalysts were characterized by
several techniques, such as FTIR, EDX, XRD, SEM, elemental mapping,
and TGA. Among these materials, [HMIm]3[PW12O40]@MOF-Fe had more acidic sites (confirmed by
potentiometric titration) and high stability around 598 °C (confirmed
by TGA). The catalytic prospect of the materials was examined through
selective acetalization of glycerol to solketal as a fuel additive
under solvent-free and room-temperature conditions. [HMIm]3[PW12O40]@MOF-Fe exhibited the highest
catalytic activity among the three catalysts in terms of glycerol
conversion (100%), solketal selectivity (100%), and solketal yield
(100%). A recyclability study of [HMIm]3[PW12O40]@MOF-Fe showed that the material could be reused
for up to 7 cycles with insignificant loss in its catalytic performance.