Heterogeneous catalytic conversion of glycerol with n-butyl alcohol

Abstract

The etherification of glycerol with n-butyl alcohol at 140°C in the presence of sulfonated cation-exchange resins and zeolite catalysts in an autoclave reactor has been studied. It has been shown that styrene—divinylbenzene ion-exchange resins are effective catalysts for the production of glycerol n-butyl ethers: the glycerol conversion is about 98% with an n-butyl ether selectivity of about 88 mol % (140°C, 5 h, 5 wt % Amberlyst 36 catalyst, and 10 wt % glycerol in n-butanol). Zeolites Y and β in the H⁺ form exhibit comparable specific activity (glycerol conversion of no more than 25% under similar conditions) in combination with high selectivity for glycerol di-n-butyl ethers (up to 28%).