Synthesis of propylene carbonate from urea and propylene glycol over zinc oxide: A homogeneous reaction

Dengfeng Wang; Xuelan Zhang; Tingting Cheng; Jing Wu; Qijun Xue; Dengfeng Wang; Xuelan Zhang; Tingting Cheng; Jing Wu; Qijun Xue

doi:10.3934/energy.2014.4.399

AIMS Energy

2014, Volume 2, Issue 4: 399-409. doi: 10.3934/energy.2014.4.399

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Synthesis of propylene carbonate from urea and propylene glycol over zinc oxide: A homogeneous reaction

College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Zaozhuang University, Zaozhuang, 277160, P.R. China

Received: 16 September 2014 Accepted: 30 October 2014 Published: 06 November 2014

In this work, several metal oxides and zinc salts were used to catalyze propylene carbonate (PC) synthesis from urea and propylene glycol (PG). According to the results of catalytic test and characterization, the catalytic pattern of ZnO was different from that of other metal oxides such as CaO, MgO and La₂O₃, but similar to that of zinc salts. In fact, the leaching of Zn species took place during reaction for ZnO. And ZnO was found to be the precursor of homogenous catalyst for reaction of urea and PG. Thus, the relationship between the amount of dissolved zinc species and the catalytic performance of employed ZnO was revealed. In addition, a possible reaction mechanism over ZnO was discussed based on the catalytic runs and the characterization of XRD, FTIR, and element analysis.
- 1,2-Propanediol,
- Propylene carbonate,
- Zinc oxide
Citation: Dengfeng Wang, Xuelan Zhang, Tingting Cheng, Jing Wu, Qijun Xue. Synthesis of propylene carbonate from urea and propylene glycol over zinc oxide: A homogeneous reaction[J]. AIMS Energy, 2014, 2(4): 399-409. doi: 10.3934/energy.2014.4.399

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Abstract

In this work, several metal oxides and zinc salts were used to catalyze propylene carbonate (PC) synthesis from urea and propylene glycol (PG). According to the results of catalytic test and characterization, the catalytic pattern of ZnO was different from that of other metal oxides such as CaO, MgO and La₂O₃, but similar to that of zinc salts. In fact, the leaching of Zn species took place during reaction for ZnO. And ZnO was found to be the precursor of homogenous catalyst for reaction of urea and PG. Thus, the relationship between the amount of dissolved zinc species and the catalytic performance of employed ZnO was revealed. In addition, a possible reaction mechanism over ZnO was discussed based on the catalytic runs and the characterization of XRD, FTIR, and element analysis.

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