Microwave-Assisted Adsorptive Desulfurization of Model Diesel Fuel Using Synthesized Microporous Rare Earth Metal-Doped Zeolite Y

Abstract

The microwave-assisted adsorptive desulfurization of model fuel (thiophene in n-heptane) was investigated using a synthesized rare earth metal-doped zeolite Y (RE Y). Crystallinity of the synthesized zeolite was 89.5%, the silicon/aluminium (Si/Al) molar ratio was 5.2, the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area was 980.9 m2/g, and the pore volume and diameter was 0.3494 cm3/g and 1.425 nm, respectively. The results showed that the microwave reactor could be used to enhance the adsorptive desulfurization process with best efficiency of 75% at reaction conditions of 100 °C and 15 minutes. The high desulfurization effect was likely due to the higher efficiency impact of microwave energy in the interaction between sulfur in thiophene and HO-La(OSiAl).