Efficient synthesis of butyl levulinate from furfuryl alcohol over ordered mesoporous Ti-KIT-6 catalysts for green chemistry applications

Abstract

Here we describe the synthesis of butyl levulinate by alcoholysis of furfuryl alcohol with n-butanol over a series of titanium incorporated mesoporous KIT-6 molecular sieve catalysts prepared by a simple sol–gel treatment. The prepared catalysts were characterized by FT-IR, BET, HR-TEM, XRD, NH₃-TPD, ICP-AES, and ²⁹Si MAS-NMR techniques. The characterization results confirmed high BET surface areas with a highly ordered porous network and well-ordered arrangements of pores. Effects of various reaction parameters on the alcoholysis reaction, including the type of catalyst, reaction temperature, time, and catalyst amount, were studied. Among the synthesized catalysts, the 100Ti-KIT-6 showed the best activity giving 94% conversion with 100% selectivity towards butyl levulinate. To confirm green chemistry aspects, heterogeneity and reusability tests were performed. Reusability experiments showed that titania catalyst could be recycled for five successive cycles without undergoing a large loss in conversion capabilities. Based on leaching and reusability studies, it was found that the green mesoporous 100Ti-KIT-6 is the best highly active catalyst and testified that the catalyst was truly heterogeneous.