Fabrication of Nanoconfined Space of Kit-6 with Highly Dispersive La2o3 Nps for Adsorptive Desulfurization

La 2 O 3 -based adsorbents are attractive in adsorptive desulfurization (ADS) of commercial fuels. However, their ADS activity strongly depends on the nanoparticle size (NPs) and dispersion degree of La 2 O 3 . Herein, the role of nanoconfined spaces and silanols groups (Si−OH) of 3-dimentional (3D) as-synthesized KIT-6 (AK) were explored for the first time for size regulation and dispersive extent of La 2 O 3 NPs. The precursor La(NO 3 ) 3 was directly introduced through grinding to the 3D nanoconfined spaces between template and silica walls of AK. The subsequent single step calcination perform dual function by not only decomposing La(NO 3 ) 3 to La 2 O 3 but also remove template P123 from AK pores. In contrast to traditional approaches, the present strategy is quite convenient to obtain La 2 O 3 -based KIT-6 adsorbents. The characterization results revealed that up to 20 wt% La 2 O 3 was well dispersed with extremely smaller size over KIT-6 (20LaAK-6), which corresponds to high ADS activity, and the amount of thiophene adsorption reached to 0.2 mmol./g of adsorbent. These results are better than 20LaCK-6 synthesized using template free KIT-6 (CK) and other reported La doped mesoporous silicas. Furthermore, 20LaAK-6 exhibited outstanding stability and regeneration ability making it attractive to be applied as potential candidate for desulfurization of commercial fuels