Hydrothermal conversion of ethylene carbonate to ethylene glycol

• Direct and efficient conversion of ethylene carbonate to ethylene glycol in aqueous media was developed.
• The transformation of ethylene carbonate provided high selectivity and high yield.
• No any catalysts and additives were added in the process.

A novel process for the conversion of ethylene carbonate (EC) to ethylene glycol (EG) in high temperature water was investigated. As a result, even there is no external catalyst and additive, the reaction of EC proceeded well and provided the desired EG in 99% yield with 25% water filling at 250 °C for 2 h. Moreover, only CO2 as by-product was observed in the process. High temperature water exhibits an unique merits and plays an catalytic role for EC conversion. From viewpoint of practice, this work provides a simple, environmentally benign, catalyst/additive-free process for the production of ethylene glycol from ethylene carbonate.