Preparation of propylene carbonate by alcoholysis of urea from the perspective of homogeneous reaction: Influence of dissolution and precipitation of metal oxide catalysts

The dissolution process of metal oxide catalysts in the alcoholysis of urea by 1, 2-propylene glycol (PG) to the synthesis of propylene carbonate (PC) was investigated. It was found that the reaction was mainly catalyzed by homogeneous catalysts. The metal oxide reacted with ammonia and isocyanate acid, the decomposition products of urea, to form a complex and dissolved into the reaction system. The dissolved amount of catalyst was positively correlated with the PC yield by using different oxides and salts as catalysts. The Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) result of the catalysts reacting with urea showed that the dissolution-precipitation process of the catalysts was related to the decomposition of urea. The results of catalytic test indicated that both the dissolved amount of catalysts and the structure of the complex affected PC yields. A reaction mechanism was proposed based on the results. From the mechanism, a complex catalyst with at least two ammonia ligands is better for this reaction.