Abstract: The aerobic oxidation of 1-pentanethiol in gasoline was carried out by mixing a small amount of air in gasoline and passing through a fixed-bed reactor packed with the CuZnAl composite oxide catalyst. The effects of reaction parameters, such as weight hourly space velocity, O2/S molar ratio, and reaction temperature, on the reaction performance were investigated. This process could proceed at high WHSV (50-70 h-1) with high 1-pentanethiol conversion (>95%) at 150 and 300 ℃ using an O2/S molar ratio of 20. The dimerization of 1-pentanethiol occurred dominantly to form its dimer at 150 ℃. The deep oxidation of 1-pentanethiol to SO2 was the dominant process at 300 ℃ in first tens of hours, but it decreased with prolonged time on stream and meanwhile the dimerization increased.

Key words: 1-pentanethiol, removal, catalytic oxidation, copper oxide, zinc oxide, alumina, composite oxide