Synthesis of Methyl 3-Hydroxypropanoate by Hydroesterifi- cation of Ethylene Oxide over Dicobalt Octacarbonyl Catalyst

摘要

Methyl 3-hydroxypropanoate was synthesized via hydroesterification of ethylene oxide with CO in the presence of dicobalt octacarbonyl catalyst and methanol solvent. The catalyst exhibited high catalytic activity. The effect of reaction temperature, CO pressure, methanol dosage, catalyst dosage and reaction time on catalytic reaction was investigated. The test results revealed that this reaction was greatly affected by reaction temperature, but it was not significantly affected by the CO pressure, the methanol dosage, the catalyst dosage and the reaction time. Under the optimal conditions, the conversion of ethylene oxide was equal to 92.24%, while the selectivity and yield of methyl 3-hydroxypropanoate reached 88.99% and 84.35%, respectively.