Solvent-free aminolysis of aliphatic and aryloxy epoxides with sulfated zirconia as solid acid catalyst

•Solid sulfated zirconia (SZ) catalysts were prepared by one and two steps methods.•SZ catalysts were calcined at 500, 600 and 700 °C temperatures and characterized.•Catalyst SZ-2-600 (two steps, 600 °C calcined) was the most active in AoE reaction.•High yield (∼98%) of product β-amino alcohols was achieved in 30–360 min at RT.•The SZ catalyst was recycled several times without loss in its activity.

Single-step and two-steps synthetic procedure for the synthesis of sulfated zirconia (SZ) was developed, which were calcined at 500, 600 and 700 °C and characterized by various physico-chemical methods such as PXRD, FTIR, surface area, microanalysis, NH3-TPD and DRIFT analysis. These SZ materials were then employed as solid acid catalysts for the aminolysis of different aliphatic/aromatic terminal, aryloxy and meso epoxides with aromatic and aliphatic amines under ambient conditions. Amongst the catalyst prepared, SZ-2-600 prepared in two-steps and 600 °C calcined was found to be the most efficient catalyst to give β-amino alcohols in up to 98% yield and >99% regioselectivity. The SZ catalyst was successfully recycled and reused up to six catalytic runs with intact efficiency.

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