Lewis Acid Catalyzed Acetalisation of Glycerol with Furfural

University:
Purdue University
Course:
CHM 34200 | Inorganic Chemistry
Academic year:

2019
Views:

382

Pages:

1
Author:

Jesus Cisneros

PINDU Abstract Title: Lewis Acid Catalyzed Acetalisation of Glycerol with Furfural Traditional Lewis acids such as ZnCl2 and Cu(OTf)2 are used as catalysts in the solvent free acetalisation of glycerol and furfural. Reactions are carried out at 100°C and a 5/1 molar ratio of furfural/glycerol, necessary to shift the equilibrium towards products. The condensation products are isolated as a mixture of 1,3c dioxolanes and 1,3c dioxanes (7:3 ratio), which can be hydrogenated with Pd/C under mild conditions. Additionally, solid acid catalysts, primarily aluminosilicate MCMc 41 (SiO2/Al2O3=79), are used to effect the condensation reaction. The MCMc 41 catalyst has been examined for reusability and used to investigate a novel reaction methods designed to improve yields and reaction times through the elimination of water.