The objective of the present study is to investigate the performance of MoO 3 /SiO 2 as a catalyst for double bond migration from 2-butene to 1-butene. The effects of MoO 3 addition on catalytic properties over SiO 2 were analyzed through BET surface area, XRD, ammonia-temperature programmed desorption (NH 3 -TPD) and FT-IR of adsorbed pyridine. The highest activity of the 10% MoO 3 /SiO 2 catalyst in double bond migration of 2-butene can be explained by the highest number of the weak acid sites. Based on the NH 3 TPD and the FT-IR of pyridine adsorption results, the increase in the overall number of acid sites can be ascribed to an increase in the number of Lewis sites by the addition of MoO 3 .