Solvent free cyclodehydration of sorbitol to isosorbide over mesoporous sulfated titania with enhanced catalytic performance

•Mesoporous sulfated titania (MST) prepared in one step by template free approach.•Calcine MST catalysts evaluated for solvent free dehydration of sorbitol.•MST catalyst showed remarkable catalytic performance than conventional SO4−2/TiO2.•MST-450 (calcine at 450 °C) exhibited high isosorbide selectivity (70%) at 180 °C.