Photocatalytic oxidative demercaptanization/denitrogenation of gasoline catalyzed by MAX-phase@rGO@PW11Zn as a high-performance nanocatalyst

Abstract

The new catalyst (assigned as MAX-phase@rGO@PW11Zn) was prepared based on [(n‐C4H9)4N][PW11ZnO39] (PW11Zn), Ti3AlC2 (MAX-phase), reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and used in photocatalytic oxidative denitrogenation (photocatalytic-ODN) and demercaptanization (photocatalytic-ODS). The photocatalysis process adjusted to demercaptanization of real gasoline and oxidation of model fuel (thiophene (TH) and pyridine (PY)). Intercalation effect of PW11Zn to Ti3AlC2 MAX-phase and reduced graphene oxide accelerate electron transfer and prevent the recombining of electron-hole pairs. MAX-phase@rGO@PW11Zn catalyst exhibited enhanced photocatalytic application and excellent reusability in the elimination of TH and PY, and producing ultra-clean fuels: 97.72% and 98.94% efficiency were achieved for thiophene (TH) and pyridine (PY), respectively at 35 °C. The good activity of MAX-phase@rGO@PW11Zn/H2O2/CH3COOH proves that this photocatalytic system can be a promising strategy for a high-performance catalyst for the generation of ultra‐low‐sulfur gasoline.