Highly effective transformation of methyl phenyl carbonate to diphenyl carbonate with recyclable Pb nanocatalyst

Diphenyl carbonate (DPC) is a type of versatile industrial chemical, and the disproportionation of methyl phenyl carbonate (MPC) is a key step to produce DPC. However, the design and formulation of a catalyst for the efficient synthesis of DPC is a major challenge due to its small equilibrium constant. The support material is a critical factor influencing the performance of Pb nanocatalysts. Thus, a series of Pb-based catalysts over MgO, ZrO₂, SiO₂, TiO₂ and Al₂O₃ were prepared to investigate the effect of the support materials on the physicochemical properties and catalytic performances for the conversion of MPC to effectively synthesize DPC. The catalysts were well characterized by XRD, BET, TEM, XPS, ICP-OES, H₂-TPR, Py-IR and NH₃-TPD. The results showed that the nature of the support obviously affected the structural properties and catalytic performances, and Pb was dispersed better on SiO₂, TiO₂, ZrO₂ and MgO than on Al₂O₃, and showed stronger metal-support interaction over MgO and ZrO₂. The activity results revealed that PbO/MgO and PbO/ZrO₂ exhibited higher catalytic activities because they contained higher Pb dispersion and more Lewis acid sites, and the catalytic activities followed the order PbO/MgO > PbO/ZrO₂ > PbO/SiO₂ > PbO/Al₂O₃ > PbO/TiO₂. On the contrary, PbO/MgO and PbO/ZrO₂ exhibited better reusability due to strong interaction between the highly dispersed Pb and the supports, and the activity decrease in the case of PbO/SiO₂, PbO/Al₂O₃ and PbO/TiO₂ mainly resulted from the Pb leaching loss. This work would contribute to exploiting novel catalytic materials in a wide range of applications for the efficient synthesis of organic carbonates.