An efficient and recyclable polyoxometalate-based hybrid catalyst for heterogeneous deep oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene derivatives with oxygen

A heterogeneous catalyst of [C3H3N2(CH3)(C4H8)] 5PMo(10)V(2)O(40) ([C-4-mim](5)PMo10V2O40) was synthesized by a self-assembly method, and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (H-1 NMR). The catalyst exhibited a high desulfurization efficiency of 93.4% sulfur removal rate in the oxidative desulfurization of dibenzothiophene (DBT) with molecular oxygen. A possible reaction mechanism for DBT oxidation is proposed.