Catalytic capability of phosphotungstic acid supported on bamboo activated carbon in esterification for biodiesel production with density functional theory

A series of heterogeneous acid catalysts are synthesized by supporting phosphotungstic acid on bamboo activated carbon and applied in catalyzing esterification for biodiesel production. With the activation of phosphoric acid, the obtained catalyst possesses the total acid density of 2.02 mmol g−1 and developed pore structure with specific surface area of 576 m2 g−1. It exhibits superior performance in catalyzing esterification of oleic acid with the maximum efficiency of 96% and acceptable renewability, where efficiency of 93% could be achieved by the regenerated catalyst. Density functional theory results indicate the activation barrier and reaction energy of the esterification are 19.73 kcal mol-1 and −15.83 kcal mol-1, respectively. This paper provides feasibility of the high value-added utilization of bamboo and basic theoretical data for esterification mechanism over heterogeneous acid catalysts.