Abstract:A series of metal oxide supported silicotungstic acid catalysts have been successfully synthesized through impregnation method. The catalysts so fabricated of the structure, stability and acidity were characterized by various physicochemical techniques such as FTIR, XRD, TGA-DTG, BET, and 31P MAS NMR and their catalytic performances during the preparation of monoglyceride laurate (GML) were assessed. The results showed that 20HSiW/SnO2 catalyst exhibited the superior catalytic performance in the preparation of GML owing to strong Br?nsted acidity and Br?nsted-Lewis acid synergy for supported catalyst. A maximum GML yield of 78.9% was achieved for the 20HSiW/SnO2 catalyst under the optimal conditions: molar ratio of glycerol (GL) to lauric acid (LA) was 5:1, the mass fraction of 20HSiW/SnO2 catalyst was 7% (based on LA), the reaction time was 3 h, and the reaction temperature was 423 K. The yield of GML could still reach 73.6% after 20HSiW/SnO2 catalyst was reused 5 times, indicating that this catalyst had excellent durability. Further kinetic studies confirmed that the esterification of GL with LA to GML with an activation energy of 33.02 kJ/mol.