Sulfamic acid–modified zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF-90) with synergetic Lewis and Brønsted acid sites for microalgal biodiesel production

In order to enhance acidic sites in catalysts to improve conversion efficiency of microalgal lipids into biodiesel, an efficient bifunctional catalyst with synergetic Lewis and Brønsted acid sites was synthesized by modifying zeolitic imidazolate framework (ZIF-90) with sulfamic acid (SA). The sulfamic acid that combined with ZIF-90 through imine bond (CN) provided protons and destroyed coordinated Zn-N bonds in ZIF-90, thereby enhancing the number of Brønsted and Lewis acid sites. The total acidity of optimal catalyst increased from 0.478 to 0.848 mmol/g, while ratio of Brønsted acid to Lewis acid increased from 0.32 to 0.49. The Lewis acid sites in bifunctional catalysts exhibited higher activity towards transesterification reactions of triglycerides in microalgal lipids, while Brønsted acid sites exhibited higher activity towards esterification reactions of free fatty acids. Therefore, the optimal catalyst (weight ratio of SA to ZIF-90 was 0.05) promoted conversion efficiency of microalgal lipids into biodiesel from 80.6 % to 98.3 % at 200 °C, while conversion efficiency remained 91.7 % after 6 reusability cycles.