Calcined, Rare Earth Modified Hydrotalcite as a Solid, Reusable Catalyst for Dimethyl Carbonate Synthesis

Abstract

An eco-friendly building block and fuel additive—dimethyl carbonate (DMC)—was synthesized through a benign route by transesterification of propylene carbonate (PC) with methanol. The catalytic activity of a series of calcined, rare earth elements (La3+, Ce3+, Pr3+, Sm3+, and Y3+; 2–10 mol %) incorporated Mg–Al hydrotalcites (HT) was evaluated for this reaction. Among several, the La (8 mol %) modified HT showed the highest activity (PC conversion = 65.4 mol % and DMC selectivity = 88 mol % at 150 °C and in 2 h). Basicity of the catalyst played an important role on the transesterification activity. The influence of reaction parameters and calcination temperature on the catalytic activity of HT was investigated. The La modified HT catalyst was heterogeneous and could be reused with little loss of activity.