Oxidation of dibenzothiophene using the heterogeneous catalyst of tungsten-based carbon nanotubes

Highly effective tungsten-based carbon nanotubes (W/CNT) were synthesized and used as a heterogeneous catalyst for the oxidation of dibenzothiophene (DBT) with the oxidant H2O2. The obtained materials were characterized by modern methods. The Langmuir Hinshelwood kinetics model described the precursor mechanism of the reaction well through an intermediate compound. The low activation energy showed that the reaction was mainly controlled by diffusion. The positive activation enthalpy proved the endothermic nature of the activation process, and this process did not alter the inside structure of the catalyst. The thermodynamic parameters of the reaction were determined, which implied that the oxidation was endothermic and spontaneous at 303 K. The more negative values of the Gibbs free energy from 283 to 323 K confirmed that the reaction was more favorable at high temperatures. The stability and activity of catalyst were retained after three reaction cycles.