Synthesis and characterization of Ce–La oxides for the formation of dimethyl carbonate by transesterification of propylene carbonate

• Cerium–lanthanum catalysts (varying Ce:La ratio) prepared by the co-precipitation method
• Catalysts characterized by XRD, CO2- and NH3-TPD, N2 adsorption, and SEM–EDX techniques
• Transesterification of propylene carbonate (PC) to produce dimethyl carbonate
• Optimization of methanol/PC molar ratio, catalyst dose, reaction time, and temperature

A series of cerium–lanthanum catalysts prepared using the co-precipitation method were investigated for transesterification of propylene carbonate (PC) with methanol to produce dimethyl carbonate (DMC). Synthesized catalysts were characterized by XRD, CO2- and NH3-TPD, N2 adsorption/desorption and SEM–EDX techniques. Studies were carried out to study the effect of reaction conditions such as methanol/PC molar ratio (4–12), catalyst dose (2–10 wt.% of PC), reaction time (2–10 h) and temperature (140–180 °C) on the DMC yield. Highest PC conversion and DMC yield of 72% and 74%, respectively, were observed with catalysts having a 1:4 Ce/La molar ratio.

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