Carboxylation of Toluene with CO2-derived Dimethyl Carbonate over Amorphous Ti-Zr Mixed-metal Oxide Catalysts

摘要

Carboxylation of arenes utilizing CO2 into value-added chemicals has received much attention but remains a challenge. Herein, we report a Ti-Zr oxide catalyst which shows high activity in the carboxylation of toluene with CO2-derived dimethyl carbonate (DMC) into methyl methylbenzoates, while the individual TiO2 and ZrO2 component show poor catalytic performance. It was found that the excellent performance is related to the amorphous state of the Ti-Zr mixed-metal oxide which possesses high acidity and moderate basicity together with high specific surface area.