Synthesis of glycerol carbonate from glycerol and dimethyl carbonate catalyzed by KF modified hydroxyapatite

Hydroxyapatite (HAP) modified with different metal salts were prepared by wet-impregnation method and used as a catalyst for the synthesis of glycerol carbonate via transesterification from glycerol and dimethyl carbonate (DMC). It was found that KF/HAP was a highly efficient heterogeneous catalyst for the synthesis of glycerol carbonate and the catalyst can be easily recovered and recycled. Under the conditions of molar ratio of DMC/glycerol of 2:1, the weight ratio of catalyst/glycerol of 3%, reaction time 50 min and reaction temperature 78 °C, the conversion of glycerol and the yield of glycerol carbonate reached 99.3% and 99.0%, respectively. The catalytic performance of KF/HAP is comparable to the homogenous catalyst of KF and better than that of K2CO3.