Direct synthesis of dimethyl carbonate from methanol and carbon dioxide over CeO2(X)-ZnO(1-X) nano-catalysts.

CeO2(X)-ZnO(1-X) (X = 0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 0.9, and 1.0) nano-catalysts were prepared by a co-precipitation method with a variation of CeO2 content (X, mol%), and they were applied to the direct synthesis of dimethyl carbonate from methanol and carbon dioxide. Successful formation of CeO2(X)-ZnO(1-X) nano-catalysts was well confirmed by XRD analysis. The amount of DMC produced over CeO2(X)-ZnO(1-X) catalysts exhibited a volcano-shaped curve with respect to CeO2 content. Acidity and basicity of CeO2(X)-ZnO(1-X) nano-catalysts were measured by NH3-TPD and CO2-TPD experiments, respectively, to elucidate the effect of acidity and basicity on the catalytic performance in the reaction. It was revealed that the catalytic performance of CeO2(X)-ZnO(1-X) nano-catalysts was closely related to the acidity and basicity of the catalysts. Amount of dimethyl carbonate increased with increasing both acidity and basicity of the catalysts. Among the catalysts tested, CeO2(0.7)-ZnO(0.3) with the largest acidity and basicity showed the best catalytic performance in the direct synthesis of dimethyl carbonate from methanol and carbon dioxide.