Facile one-pot synthesis of glycidol from glycerol and dimethyl carbonate catalyzed by tetraethylammonium amino acid ionic liquids

•A series of tetraethylammonium amino acid ionic liquids (TAAILs) were synthesized.•Facile one-pot synthesis of glycidol was achieved by TAAILs.•[N2222][Pipe] induced 96% glycerol conversion and 82% glycidol selectivity.

Four tetraethylammonium amino acid ionic liquids (TAAILs) were prepared and used as catalysts for facile one-pot synthesis of glycidol from glycerol and dimethyl carbonate. The results indicate that tetraethylammonium pipecolinate ([N2222][Pipe]) exhibits the best catalytic activity compared with other three TAAILs, and catalyzes the reaction to reach a glycerol conversion of 96% and a glycidol yield of 79% under optimum conditions. Moreover, DFT calculated results further manifest that such excellent performance originates from the carboxyl group in [N2222][Pipe], which enables [N2222][Pipe] to activate the substrates effectively.

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