A Brønsted–Lewis-surfactant-combined heteropolyacid as an environmental benign catalyst for esterification reaction

A Brønsted–Lewis-surfactant-combined heteropolyacid (HPA) catalyst (C16TA)H4TiPW11O40 (C16TA = cetyltrimethyl ammonium) had been designed and used as a water-tolerantly heterogeneous catalyst in esterification of free fatty acid with a higher conversion (94.7%) and excellent efficiency (91.8% yield) due to its acidic properties and structures. This micellar polyoxometalate catalyst was stable during the reaction and can be recycled by a simple separation process.

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► Assembly of heteropolyacids into micellar system with Brønsted and Lewis acidity.
► First example of an efficient catalyst used in a micellar heteropolyacid system.
► Water-tolerant property available for esterification reaction.
► Easily handing of this catalyst.