One-pot Synthesis of Dimethyl Carbonate in the Presence of a Two-component Catalyst

The one-pot synthesis of dimethyl carbonate（DMC） with co-production of propy-lene carbonate（PC） and propylene glycol（PG） from propylene oxide（ PO）, carbon dioxide and methanol as the starting materials was investigated. The catalyst adopted here was a mixture of tetrabutyl ammonium bromide and sodium methoxide. It was found that un- der the reaction conditions of t = 150 ℃, p =3-4 MPa and 2 h, the PO conversion could reach 100%, the DMC, PC and the PG selectivities were 49. 7%, 42. 7% and 49. 8%, respectively, and the selectivity of by-products was below 10%.     

不同沉淀剂制备的Ag／TS－1催化丙烯直接气相氧化合成环氧丙烷

 在423K、常压固定床石英反应器中，以丙烯直接气相氧化为探针反应，考察了催化剂制备方法、沉淀剂的种类和浓度对制备的Ag／TS－1催化剂催化性能的影响，采用TEM，XRD和UV－Vis等表征手段对Ag／TS－1催化剂进行了分析．结果表明，沉积－沉淀法是最佳的催化剂制备方法，但浸渍法也可制得具有环氧丙烷选择性的催化剂．K2CO3是一种良好的沉淀剂．以K2CO3为沉淀剂，硅钛比为64的TS－1为载体制备的Ag／TS－1催化剂上的丙烯转化率为1．72％，环氧丙烷选择性为98．2％．少量单质银的存在有利于环氧丙烷的生成，除银粒子的分散状态外，银粒子与载体TS－1间的相互作用对提高催化剂的选择性具有决定性作用．     

温和条件下电催化CO2与环氧丙烷合成碳酸丙烯酯

 在常温常压下研究了CO2的电化学活化及其与环氧丙烷反应合成碳酸丙烯酯,考察了支持电解质对碳酸丙烯酯产率的影响. 结果表明,含有Br-的支持电解质对合成碳酸丙烯酯起到明显的催化效果. 在实验研究基础上,对反应机理进行了初步推测,认为Mg2+起到路易斯酸的作用并与环氧丙烷的氧原子配位,同时Br-作为亲核试剂进攻环氧丙烷的 C-O 键使其断裂开环,形成的中间物与CO2还原产生的活化物质结合形成碳酸丙烯酯.     

MCF固载离子液体催化CO2合成碳酸丙烯酯的研究

通过原位合成法将[(EtO)3SiPMIm]Cl固载在MCF材料上,制得MCF固载化离子液体催化剂[(EtO)3Si PMIm]Cl/MCF。用N2吸附-脱附、TEM和FT-IR等手段表征催化剂,并考察其在CO2与环氧丙烷(PO)环加成合成碳酸丙烯酯(PC)反应中的催化性能。结果表明,嫁接等量离子液体后,MCF固载化离子液体催化剂体系对CO2环加成合成PC反应的催化活性高于SBA-15催化剂体系。在2.5MPa、140℃反应条件下,PO的转化率高达85.4%,且催化剂具有良好的循环使用性。     

Steric hindrance ligand strategy to aluminum porphyrin catalyst for completely alternative copolymerization of CO2 and propylene oxide

Aluminum porphyrin complexes are heavy-metal-free and soil-tolerant green catalysts for the copolymerization of CO2 and propylene oxide (PO),but they suffer from relatively poor poly(propylene carbonate) (PPC) selectivity.Herein,steric hindrance porphyrin ligand was used to enhance the PPC selectivity.Typically,a bulky anthracene-like group was incorporated into the porphyrin ring to form 5,10,15,20-tetra(1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8-octahydro-1,4:5,8-dimethanoanthracen-9-yl)porphyrin,the aluminum porphyrin complex with this ligand,in combination with bis(triphenylphosphine)iminium chloride as a co-catalyst,produced completely alternate PPC.Additionally,the obtained PPC showed high regioselectivity,with a head-to-tail linkage content (HT) of 92％.Therefore,we demonstrated that introduction of bulky steric ligand into the porphyrin ring could reduce the propylene oxide homopolymerization activity leading to excellent PPC selectivity,and improve regioselectivity for the PO ring-opening during the copolymerization.     

Double metal cyanide catalyst prepared using H3Co(CN)6 for high carbonate fraction and molecular weight control in carbon dioxide/propylene oxide copolymerization

Simple mixing of H₃Co(CN)₆ and ZnCl₂ in methanol resulted in precipitates of [ZnCl]⁺₂[HCo(CN)₆]^2?, constituting a new type of double metal cyanide (DMC) catalyst exhibiting a high performance in carbon dioxide (CO₂)/propylene oxide (PO) copolymerization. High‐molecular‐weight poly(propylene carbonate‐co‐propylene oxide)s [poly(PC‐co‐PO)s] (M_n～40,000) were consistently obtained with high carbonate fractions (～60 mol %) and a high selectivity (>95%) with the new type of DMC catalyst. Conventional preparation of the DMC catalyst using K₃Co(CN)₆ and ZnCl₂ required removing KCl through thorough washing and resulted in lower carbonate fractions (10–40 mol %), which depended on the washing conditions. Feeding hydrophobic diols such as 1,10‐decanediol as chain transfer agent preserved the high carbonate fraction (～60%) and enabled precise control of the molecular weight, including preparation of a low‐molecular‐weight poly(PC‐co‐PO)‐diol (M_n ～2000), which was a flowing viscous liquid with a low T_g (?30 °C) suitable for polyurethane applications. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013 , 51, 4811–4818     

Synthesis of Cyclic Carbonate Catalyzed by DBU Derived Basic Ionic Liquids

In this work, 1,8‐diazabicyclo[5.4.0]undec‐7‐ene (DBU), 1,5‐diazabicyclo[4.3.0]‐5‐nonene (DBN), and imidazole (MIM)‐derived bromide ionic liquids (ILs) were synthesized and used to catalyze the cycloaddition reactions of carbon dioxide (CO₂) with several kinds of epoxides to form cyclic carbonates. The DBU derived bromide ionic liquid system was found to have the best catalytic activity among all the tested ILs. The influences of reaction conditions (including temperature, pressure and reaction time) on the reaction of CO₂ to propylene oxide (PO) were studied to show the best conditions of 120 °C, 1 MPa, 2.5 h catalyzed by 2 mol% DBU‐derived bromide ionic liquid, with the conversion of PO and the selectivity of propylene carbonate (PC) reaching 99% and 99%, respectively. Under the optimum reaction conditions, the ionic liquid system could be reused at least five times without decrease in selectivity and conversion. NMR spectroscopy and DFT calculations were used to reveal the hydrogen‐bond interaction between ionic liquids and reagent, based on which the reaction mechanism was proposed.     

不同TS-1分子筛含量条状催化剂的丙烯环氧化性能

环氧丙烷(PO)是重要的有机化工原料，主要用于生产聚醚多元醇、丙二醇及其它化工产品。现在工业上主要采用氯醇法和Halcon法生产环氧丙烷，但分别存在污染和联产物量大等问题，人们在改进原有工艺的同时，致力于寻找流程短、副产少、无污染的新工艺。TS-1分子筛的成功合成^[1]及其在以     

Dimethyl carbonate synthesis via transesterification catalyzed by quaternary ammonium salt functionalized chitosan

A quaternary ammonium salt covalently linked to chitosan was first used as a catalyst for dimethyl carbonate （DMC） synthesis by the transesterification of propylene carbonate （PC） with methanol. The effects of various reaction variables like reaction time, temperature and pressure on the catalytic performance were also investigated. 54% DMC yield and 71% PC conversion were obtained under the optimal reaction conditions. Notably, the catalyst was able to be reused with retention of high catalytic activity and selectivity. Consequently, the process presented here has great potential for industrial application due to its advantages such as stability, easy preparation from renewable biopolymer, and simple separation from products.     

Copolymerization of Carbonyl Sulfide and Propylene Oxide via a Heterogeneous Prussian Blue Analogue Catalyst with High Productivity and Selectivity

This study demonstrates the superiority of a stable and well-defined heterogeneous cobalt hexacyanocobaltate (Co₃[Co(CN)₆]₂), a typical cobalt Prussian Blue Analogue (CoCo-PBA) that catalyzes the copolymerization of carbonyl sulfide (COS) and propylene oxide (PO) to produce poly(propylene monothiocarbonate)s (PPMTC). The number-average molecular weights of the PPMTC were 66.4 to 139.4 kg/mol, with a polydispersity of 2.0–3.9. The catalyst productivity reached 1040 g polymer/g catalyst (12.0 h). The oxygen-sulfur exchange reaction (O/S ER), which would generate random thiocarbonate and carbonate units, was effectively suppressed, and thus the selectivity of the monothiocarbonate over carbonate linkages was up to >99%. It was shown that no cyclic thiocarbonate byproduct was produced during the heterogeneous catalysis of COS/PO copolymerization using CoCo-PBA as the catalyst. The content of monothiocarbonate and ether units in the copolymer chain could be regulated by tuning the feeding amount of COS.     

Controlled synthesis of CO2-diol from renewable starter by reducing acid value through preactivation approach

Synthesis of polyols from carbon dioxide (CO₂) is attractive from the viewpoint of sustainable development of polyurethane industry; it is also interesting to adjust the structure of the CO₂-polyols for versatile requirement of polyurethane. However, when renewable malonic acid was used as a starter, the copolymerization reaction of CO₂ and propylene oxide (PO) was uncontrollable, since it proceeded slowly (13 h) and produced 40.4 wt% of byproduct propylene carbonate (PC) with a low productivity of 0.34 kg/g. A careful analysis disclosed that the acid value of the copolymerization medium was the key factor for controlling the copolymerization reaction. Therefore, a preactivation approach was developed to dramatically reduce the acid value to ~0.6 mg(KOH)/g by homopolymerization of PO into oligo-ether-diol under the initiation of malonic acid, which ensured the controllable copolymerization, where the copolymerization time could be shortened by 77% from 13 to 3 h, the PC content was reduced by 76% from 40.4 wt% to 9.4 wt%, and the productivity increased by 61% from 0.34 to 0.55 kg/g. Moreover, by means of preactivation approach, the molecular weight as well as the carbonate unit content in the CO₂-diol was also controllable.     

Propylene Epoxidation by Dioxygen over Catalyst Copper-loaded TiO2

A copper-TiO2 based catalyst(Cu-OH-Cl-TiO2) was prepared through a slurry impregnation approach and the catalyst was found to be active and selective for the epoxidation of propylene by dioxygen. With a feed gas of 10% C3H6, 10% O2 and 80% N2 at a gas hourly space velocity(GHSV) of 4000 h–1, a propylene conversion of 4.8% and a propylene oxide(PO) selectivity of 38.9% were achieved over the obtained Cu-OH-Cl-TiO2 catalyst at a reaction temperature of 500 K. It revealed that Cu2+ provided by crystalline Cu2(OH)3Cl plays a key role in catalytic conversion of propylene to PO.     

Study of electronic effect in bifunctional catalysts for the copolymerization of CO2 and PO/CHO

Carbon dioxide (CO₂) is an easily available renewable carbon source that can be used as a comonomer in the catalytic ring-opening polymerization of epoxides to form aliphatic polycarbonates. Herein, a series of new Salen-Co(III) bifunctional catalysts were synthesized for the first time, and they were studied to catalyze the copolymerization of CO₂ and propylene oxide (PO)/cyclohexene oxide (CHO). At the same time, the effects of reaction conditions (electronic effect, temperature, time) on catalytic activity and selectivity were investigated. The results show that the Salen-Co(III) complexes with electron-withdrawing groups have higher selectivity and activity for propylene carbonate (PPC)/cyclohexylene carbonate (PCHC). At the same time, the Salen-Co(III) complexes can better catalyze the copolymerization of CHO and CO₂ than that of PO and CO₂. The catalytic efficiency of the four complexes increased with increasing temperature, and the best reaction condition is 80°C, 30 min and 2 MPa of CO₂.     

Direct gas-phase epoxidation of propylene to propylene oxide using air as oxidant on supported gold catalyst

Gold catalysts supported on SiO2, TiO2, TiO2-SiO2, and ZrO2-SiO2 supports were prepared by impregnating each support with a basic solution of tetrachloroauric acid. X-ray diffraction （XRD）, transmission electron microscopy （TEM）, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS） techniques were used to characterize their structure and surface composition. The results indicated that the size of gold particles could be controlled to below 10 nm by this method of preparation. Washing gold catalysts with water could markedly enhance the dispersion of metallic gold particles on the surface, but it could not completely remove the chloride ions left on the surface. The catalytic performance of direct vapor-phase epoxidation of propylene using air as an oxidant over these catalysts was evaluated at atmospheric pressure. The selectivity to propylene oxide （PO） was found to vary with reaction time on the stream. At the reaction conditions of atmosphere pressure, temperature 325 ℃, feed gas ratio V（C3H6）/V（O2）= 1/2, and GHSV =6000h^-1, 17.9% PO selectivity with 0.9% propylene conversion were obtained at initial 10 min for Au/SiO2 catalyst. After reacting 60 min only 8.9% PO selectivity were detected, but the propylene conversion rises to 1.4% and the main product is transferred to acrolein （72% selectivity）. Washing Au/TiO2-SiO2 and Aa/ZrO2-SiO2 samples with magnesium citrate solution could markedly enhance the activity and PO selectivity because smaller gold particles were obtained.     

Cycloaddition of CO2 to epoxides catalyzed by polyaniline salts

The catalytic activity of polyaniline-HX (X=I, Br, Cl) (PANI-HI, PANI-HBr, PANI-HCl) for the cycloaddition of CO2 to propylene oxide (PO) to produce propylene carbonate (PC) was studied for the first time. It was shown that all the PANI salts were active for the reaction, and PANI-HI was most active and selective. On the basis of the preliminary results, the effect of the reaction conditions on the cycloadditions of CO2 to propylene oxide and epichlorohydrin was further investigated by using PANI-HI as the catalyst. The results indicated that the optimized temperature was around 115 degrees C. The maxima occurred in yield versus pressure curves at about 5 MPa for both substrates. Complete conversion was achieved in 3 h for epichlorohydrin and 6 h for propylene oxide at 115 degrees C and 5 MPa. With propylene oxide as the substrate, the reusability of PANI-HI was evaluated and no loss of catalytic activity was detectable after the catalyst had been reused five times. The catalyst was characterized by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which provided further evidence for the high stability of the catalyst. We believe that the catalyst has great potential for industrial applications because it has some unusual advantages, such as its easy preparation, high activity, selectivity, stability, low cost, and simple separation from products.     

Temperature‐responsive Catalyst for the Coupling Reaction of Carbon Dioxide and Propylene Oxide

The selective synthesis of polypropylene carbonate (PPC) and cyclic propylene carbonate (CPC) from coupling reaction of CO₂ and propylene oxide (PO) is a long term pursuing target. Here we report that a temperature controllable porphyrin aluminum catalyst using 5,10,15,20‐tetra(1,2,3,4,5,6, 7,8‐octahydro‐1,4:5,8‐dimethanoanthracen‐9‐yl)porphyrin as ligand, once in conjunction with suitable onium salt, achieved single cycloaddition or copolymerization reaction. Only cycloaddition reaction happened at temperature above 75 °C to produce 100% CPC, whereas copolymerization became dominant to afford PPC with selectivity over 99% at 25 °C, and the obtained PPC showed over 99% carbonate linkage and 92% head‐to‐tail structure. Based on systematic analysis of the electronic and steric feature in the porphyrin ligand, it was found that the electronic feature of the substituent in porphyrin ligand was decisive for PPC selectivity, porphyrin ligand bearing strong electron‐donating substituents displayed a significantly reduced tolerance towards increased temperature with respect to PPC formation. Therefore, temperature‐responsive catalyst could be designed by suitable modification in porphyrin ligand, and such accurate synthesis of target product by one catalyst may create a useful and facile platform for selective PPC or CPC production.     

丙烯和氧等离子体直接气相合成环氧丙烷

在室温和大气压下,在针板式反应器中,通过脉冲电晕放电等离子体对分子氧和丙烯直接合成环氧丙烷的活化作用,考察了放电电极间距、电晕放电脉冲电压以及电晕放电重复频率参数对丙烯转化率、环氧丙烷产率和其选择性的影响,反应物及各产物通过在线色谱法进行分析.实验结果表明,在室温和大气压下,用脉冲电晕等离子体法可转化丙烯和氧气直接生成环氧丙烷,适当调节上述各参数可提高环氧丙烷的收率.当反应气总流速为200mL/min,极间距为4mm,脉冲放电电压为18kV,放电频率为120Hz时,环氧丙烷的收率、丙烯的转化率及环氧丙烷的选择性分别为5.15%,19.15%和26.89%.     

Terpolymerization of propylene oxide,carbon dioxide,and trimethylene carbonate

High-molecular-weight polymers with different contents of propylene carbonate (PC), and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) units in the polymer chain were synthesized by the coordination anionic copolymerization of carbon dioxide, propylene oxide (PO), and TMC in supercritical carbon dioxide (scCO₂). Zinc adipate (ZnAd) was used as a catalyst. The terpolymerization products were characterized by ¹H and ¹³C NMR, IR spectroscopy, GPC, and DSC. The effect of the reaction conditions on the yield, composition, structure, and molecular weight and thermal characteristics of the terpolymers was studied. The phase behavior of the synthesized polymers and mixtures of polypropylene carbonate with polytrimethylene carbonate was examined.

     

KI/NH3协同催化CO2与环氧丙烷合成碳酸丙烯酯的反应机理

采用密度泛函理论(DFT)研究了NH₃/KI、KI及无催化剂条件下, CO₂与环氧丙烷(PO)合成碳酸丙烯酯(PC)的反应机理. 在B3LYP/6-311++G^**基组水平上(I采用MIDIX基组)优化了反应过程中的反应物、中间体、过渡态和产物, 通过振动分析及内禀反应坐标(IRC)确定中间体和过渡态的真实性. 同时, 在相同基组水平应用自然键轨道(NBO)理论和分子中的原子(AIM)理论分析了这些化合物的轨道间相互作用和成键特征. 研究结果表明: 在无催化剂条件下非协同反应通道PO+CO₂→M0a→TS0c→M0c→TS0c′→PC为最有利通道, 其活化能为200.65 kJ·mol^-1; KI催化下活化能降低至187.40 kJ·mol^-1, 反应速率较小; 在KI/NH₃协同催化下, 除KI的催化作用外, NH₃中的氢原子还能与CO₂或PO中的氧原子形成氢键, 活化反应, 活化能降低至154.64 kJ·mol^-1, 大幅度提高了PO与CO₂环合生成产物PC的反应速率, 理论计算与实验结果一致.     

Bifunctional cobalt Salen complex: a highly selective catalyst for the coupling of CO2 and epoxides under mild conditions

A bifunctional cobalt Salen complex containing a Lewis acid metal center and two covalent bonded Lewis bases on the ligand was designed and used for the coupling of CO₂ and epoxides under mild conditions. The complex exhibited excellent activity (turnover frequency = 673/h) and selectivity (no less than 97%) for polymer formation in the copolymerization of propylene oxide (PO) and CO₂ at an appropriate combination of all variables. High molecular weight of 110 200 and yield 99% were achieved at a higher [PO]/[complex] ratio of 6000:1. The complex also worked satisfactorily for the terpolymerization of CO₂, PO and cyclohexene oxide (CHO), without formation of cyclic carbonate or ether linkages to give the polycarbonate. High cyclohexene carbonate unit content in the CO₂/PO/CHO terpolymers resulted in enhanced thermal stability. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.