The capability of extraction-coupled oxidative desulfurization
(ECODS) to remove refractory sulfur compounds like dibenzothiophene
from a model fuel has been investigated. Therefore, n-tetradecane was chosen as a diesel fuel matrix, and an aqueous H8[PV5Mo7O40] (HPA-5) polyoxometalate
catalyst solution was used for the oxidative treatment. The oxidant
of choice was molecular oxygen, and the desulfurization was conducted
under moderate reaction conditions (130 °C, 20 bar O2). Thiophene and benzothiophene were found to degrade so fast into
water-soluble substances that neither sulfoxides nor sulfones could
be detected analytically as reaction intermediates. However, the analytical
data show that the oxidation of refractory sulfur molecules, like
dibenzothiophene (DBT) and its alkylated derivatives, into water-soluble
products occurs via the sulfoxides and sulfones in a subsequent reaction.
Furthermore, the kinetic data reveal that the degradation of the sulfone,
i.e., the carbon skeleton, represents the rate-determining step in
ECODS of dibenzothiophenes. The sulfoxide being formed initially is
almost directly converted to the corresponding sulfone that accumulates
and is only slowly transferred to water-soluble products. In contrast
to thiophene and benzothiophene, DBT was found to inhibit the formation
of active catalyst species. This inhibition could be reversed by adding
a sacrificial substrate such as oxalic acid yielding the active catalyst
species by reduction of HPA-5 from VV to VIV. Finally, the influence of organic nitrogen and oxygen compounds,
which are also present in real distillation cuts, on ECODS has been
studied.