A comparative study of methanol carbonation on unsupported SnO2 and ZrO2

International audience; The aim of this work was to explore the catalytic properties of SnO2 in the coupling of methanol with carbon dioxide to afford dimethyl carbonate. SnO2 nanopowders were produced by hydrolysis of tin tetra-tert-butoxide dissolved in n-butanol. The samples were much more active than a commercial one due to their higher surface areas. In addition, they exhibited excellent recyclability. However, comparison with ZrO2, prepared and tested under the same experimental conditions, showed that zirconia-based catalysts were more selective and are, among the heterogeneous catalysts already reported, still the more selective. SnO2 also catalyzed the formation of dimethyl ether l…