Silicalite-1 for Glycerol Acetalization

Silicalite-1 is a high silica MFI structure type zeolite with no noticeable catalytically active (e.g., acid) sites. Modification with solutions of NH4F of varying concentrations generates in Silicalite-1 efficient and selective acid sites for the acetalization of glycerol with acetone towards solketal. The modified materials were characterized using adequate techniques (i.e., XRD, SEM, TEM, FTIR). It was shown that the newly created acidic sites, characterized by significantly higher acidic strength and enhanced accessibility for reagents compared to the pristine one, demonstrate exceptional catalytic activity in the acetalization of glycerol with acetone, displaying notable selectivity towards solketal.