Catalytic Conversion of Dihydroxyacetone to Methyl Lactate Over SnO2/Al2O3 Catalysts.

The conversion of dihydroxyacetone solution in methanol to methyl lactate has been studied in flow regime using xSnO2/Al2O3-supported catalysts that have been characterized by XRD, low-temperature nitrogen (ad)desorption analysis, and UV-Vis spectroscopy. It is found that Lewis and Brønsted acid sites of the surface of SnO2-containing catalysts play a crucial role in the selective conversion of dihydroxyacetone to methyl lactate. The formation of methyl lactate with a selectivity of 90% is achieved on 5%SnO2/Al2O3 catalyst at 160°C, 1.0 MPa, and under feed rate of 4 mmol C3H6O3/(gcat·h). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]