Synthesis of titanium silicalite-1 supported zinc catalysts for efficient and clean epoxidation of 1-hexene and methyl oleate

To improve the catalytic epoxidation activity of conventional TS-1 zeolite under acid-free conditions, a series of TS-1-supported zinc (xZn/TS-1) catalysts were prepared and evaluated in the epoxidation of 1-hexene and methyl oleate (MO) with H2O2 oxidant. The microstructure of xZn/TS-1 was investigated using various characterization techniques, and the results showed that the introduction of Zn species was not only well dispersed on the surface of TS-1 but also did not disrupt the crystal structure of TS-1 and tetrahedral framework titanium. Furthermore, the Ti-O-Zn structure can be formed between Zn and Ti species through O-atomic coordination, which improves the vulnerability of the Ti-O bond to attack the H2O2 molecule, and ultimately facilitates the epoxidation reaction between 1-hexene and MO. In addition, the 2%Zn/TS-1 catalysts showed optimal conversions of 45.7% and 75.41% for 1-hexene and MO, respectively, and exhibited good catalytic stability and regeneration during the epoxidation process.