The Oxyalkylation of Hydrophilic Black Alder Bark Extractives with Propylene Carbonate with a Focus on Green Polyols Synthesis

The isolated hydrophilic black alder(Alnus glutinosa)bark extractives were characterized in terms of component and functional composition and converted at 150℃-170℃ into liquid green polyols using solvent-free and lowtoxic base-catalyzed modification with propylene carbonate(PC).FTIR spectroscopy,HP-LC,GC,GPC,and wet chemistry methods were used to characterize the starting constituents,intermediate and final products of the reaction and to monitor the different pathways of PC conversion.The reaction of extractives as well as the model compounds,including catechol,xylose,PEG 400,and benzoic acid,with PC indicated the ability of OH groups of different origins present in the extractives to condense with equivalent amounts of PC.The polyols obtained consist of a copolymer fraction with one oxypropyl unit grafted per OH functionality of extractive components on average and oligo oxypropyl diols with a small number of carbonate linkages in the chain,obtained as a result of remaining PC homopolymerization.The domination of the oxypropylation mechanism vs.transcarbonation for PC ring opening was observed for both copolymerization and homopolymerization processes,making the process of oxypropylation with PC similar to that of conventional oxypropylation.At optimal reaction conditions,including a PC/OH ratio of 3.0 and a 24-h duration at 150°C,uniform polyols with low viscosity of~900 mPa·s^(-1),a biomass content of~27%,and an OHV of~500 mg KOH·g^(-1) were obtained.Increasing the temperature of modification allows shortening the process but drastically increases the polyol viscosity.At fixed temperature values,increasing the PC/OH ratio not only decreases the biomass content but also strongly prolongs the processing.The significantly increased duration of the process using PC as an alternative oxyalkylation agent compared to that of oxyalkylation with propylene oxide is a reasonable trade-off for using a safer and more environmentally friendly technology.

Synthesis of propylene carbonate from urea and 1,2-propanediol

The production of propylene carbonate （PC） from urea and 1,2-propanediol （PG） was investigated in a batch process. The catalytic performances of zinc chloride and magnesium chloride were investigated for this reaction system. The influences of various operation conditions on the PC yield were explored. In this work, MgCl2 and ZnCl2 showed the excellent catalytic activity toward PC synthesis, and the yields of propylene carbonate reached 96.5% and 92.4%, respectively. The optimum reaction conditions were as follows： ethanol/urea molar ratio of 4, catalyst concentration of 1.5%, reaction temperature of 160 ℃, reaction time of 3 h, respectively. The route from urea and 1,2-propanediol shows advantages, such as mild reaction condition and safe operation. The catalytic system is environmentally benign.

Electrocatalytic Synthesis of Propylene Carbonate from CO_2 and Propylene Oxide

The electrocatalytic synthesis of propylene carbonate（PC） from CO2 and propylene oxide（PO） was studied under mild conditions（PCO2=1.01×105 Pa, t=25 ℃）. Influences of solvents, supporting electrolytes, the passed charge, the nature of electrodes and the current density（j） on the yield of PC were investigated to optimize the electrolytic conditions, with the maximal yield to be 46.2%, the selectivity of propylene carbonate is 100%. The reduction of propylene oxide in the absence and presence of CO2 was examined by cyclic voltammetry. The mechanism of the reaction initiated by the synergistic effect of halides ions of supporting electrolytes with nucleophilicity and the metal ions from scarification anode with Lewis acid acidity was proposed on the basis of our results.

Direct synthesis of propylene carbonate from propylene and carbon dioxide catalyzed by quaternary ammonium heteropolyphosphatotungstate–TBAB system

In this paper,we have developed a highly efficient method for the direct preparation of propylene carbonate from propylene and carbon dioxide（CO2） using quaternary ammonium heteropolyphosphatotungstate–quaternary ammonium halide catalytic system with anhydrous hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant through one-pot two-step process.The effects of the amount of tetrabutylammonium bromide（TBAB）,the concentration of hydrogen peroxide and other reaction conditions were investigated.The catalyst system gave an optimum propylene oxide yield（91%） at75°C in oxidation step and the highest propylene carbonate yield（99%） at 140°C and 3.0 MPa in cycloaddition step.Based on the results,a reaction mechanism has been proposed.

Catalytic Formation of Propylene Carbonate from Supercritical Carbon Dioxide/Propylene Oxide Mixture

Propylene carbonate was synthesized from supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2)/ propylene oxide mixture with phthalocyaninatoaluminium chloride (ClAlPc)/ tetrabutylstmmonium bromide (n-Bu4NBr) as catalyst. The high rate of reaction was attributed to rapid diffusion and the high miscibility of propylene oxide in SC-CO2 under employed conditions. Various reaction periods present different formation rate of propylene carbonate, mainly due to the existence of phase change during the reaction. The experimental results demonstrate that SC-CO2 could be used as not only an environmentally benign solvent but also a carbon precursor in synthesis.

Zn–Ca–Al mixed oxide as efficient catalyst for synthesis of propylene carbonate from urea and 1,2-propylene glycol

A series of Zn–Ca–Al oxides with different CaO and ZnO contents have been prepared and evaluated in the synthesis of propylene carbonate(PC) from 1,2-propylene glycol(PG) and urea in a batch reactor. The effect of catalyst composition, basicity and reaction process parameters such as temperature, catalyst dose, molar ratio of PG to urea, purge gas flow and reaction time has been studied to find suitable reaction conditions for the PC synthesis. The PC selectivity and yield under the desired conditions could reach 98.4% and 90.8%, respectively. The best performing catalyst also exhibited a good reusability without appreciable loss in the PC selectivity and yield after five consecutive reaction runs. In addition, a stepwise reaction pathway involving a 2-hydroxypropyl carbamate intermediate was proposed for the urea alcoholysis to PC in the presence of Zn–Ca–Al catalysts, according to the time dependences of reaction intermediates and products.

Abnormal Polarity Effects of Streamer Discharge in Propylene Carbonate under Microsecond Pulses

Propylene carbonate （PC） has a great potential to be used as an energy storage medium in the compact pulsed power sources due to its high dielectric constant and large resistivity. We investigate both the positive and negative breakdown characteristics of PC. The streamer patterns are obtained by ultra-high-speed cameras. The experimental results show that the positive breakdown voltage of PC is about 135% higher than the negative one, which is abnormal compared with the common liquid. The shape of the positive streamer is filamentary and branchy, while the negative streamer is tree-like and less branched. According to these experimental results, a charge layer structure model at the interface between the metal electrode and liquid is presented. It is suggested that the abnormal polarity effect basically arises from the electric field strength difference in the interface between both electrodes and PC. What is more, the recombination radiation and photoionization also play an important role in the whole discharge process.

Preparation of poly(propylene carbonate)/organophilic rectorite nanocomposites via direct melt intercalation

The completely degradable nanocomposites comprised of poly(propylene carbonate)(PPC) and organo-modified rectorite (OREC) were prepared by direct melt intercalation. The structure and mechanical properties of PPC/OREC nanocomposites were investigated. The wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) results show that the galleries distance of OREC is increased after PPC and OREC melt intercalation, which indicates that PPC molecular chain has intercalated into the layers of OREC. The PPC/OREC nanocomposites with lower OREC content show an increase in thermal decomposition temperature compared with pure PPC. The tensile strength and impact strength of PPC/OREC nanocomposites are improved. When the mass fraction of OREC is 4%, the tensile strength and impact strength of the PPC/OREC nanocomposite increase by 22.86% and 48.58% respectively, compared with pure PPC.

Activation of Carbon Dioxide and Synthesis of Propylene Carbonate

Cycloaddition of carbon dioxide and propylene oxide to propylene carbonate catalyzed by tetra-tert-butyl metal phthalocyanine in the presence of tributylamine (TBA) shows higher yield than catalyzed by unsubstituted metal phthalocyanine. Comparing different catalysts of diverse metals, (t-Bu)4PcMg is more active than (t-Bu)4PcFe. But (t-Bu)4PcCo and (t-Bu)4PcNi only have low catalytic activities towards the reaction. Moreover, the yield will increase as the temperature increases.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CATION—CONDUCTIVE BLENDS PLASTICIZED WITH PROPYLENE CARBONATE

The cation—conductive blends plasticized with propylene carbonate were prepared. The blends exhibited good mechanical strength and single—cation conduction over a wide range of plasticizer composition. The plasticizer not only increases the conductivity of the blends but also decreases the electrochemical interface resistance between the blend and lithium electrode. The carrier in the blends obviously grows in number.

Adsorption of propylene carbonate on the LiMn2O4(100)surface investigated by DFT+U calculations

Understanding the mechanism of the interfacial reaction between the cathode material and the electrolyte is a significant work because the interfacial reaction is an important factor affecting the stability,capacity,and cycling performance of Li-ion batteries.In this work,spin-polarized density functional theory calculations with on-site Coulomb energy have been employed to study the adsorption of electrolyte components propylene carbonate(PC)on the LiMn2O4(100)surface.The findings show that the PC molecule prefers to interact with the Mn atom on the LiMn2O4(100)surface via the carbonyl oxygen(Oc),with the adsorption energy of−1.16 eV,which is an exothermic reaction.As the adsorption of organic molecule PC increases the Mn atoms coordination with O atoms on the(100)surface,the Mn3+ions on the surface lose charge and the reactivity is substantially decreased,which improves the stability of the surface and benefits the cycling performance.

Synthesis of Urea by Ammonolysis of Propylene Carbonate

Studying urea formation by ammonolysis of propylene carbonate in a liquid phase showed that this process is two-stage, and proceeds through preferred formation of 2-hydroxypropyl carbamate, besides, the rate of the first stage is much higher than the rate of the second stage （urea formation）. With the aid of the HPLC and HPLC/MS methods found some other intermediate products and offered consecutive-parallel scheme of the process. The obtained results explain the composition of impurities obtained during the production of the 13C-urea for diagnostic breath tests.

INFLUENCE OF DIALKYLZINC IN RARE-EARTH TERNARY CATALYST ONTHE COPOLYMERIZATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND PROPYLENE OXIDE

Rare-earth ternary catalysts Y（CCl3COO）3-ZnR2-glycerin were prepared for the copolymerization of carbon dioxide and propylene oxide （PO）, where dialkylzincs （ZnR2） were diethylzinc, di（n-propyl）zinc, di（n-butyl）zinc, di（i-propyl）zinc, di（i-butyl）zinc, di（s-butyl）zinc,respectively. The Y（CCl3COO）3-ZnR2-glycerin catalysts displayed the highest catalytic activity at the molar ratio of Y（CCl3COO）3：ZnR2：glycerin = 1：20：10. In the same copolymerization condition, catalysts containing dialkylzincs with branched alkyl group showed lower catalytic activity than that with primary alkyl group. For those catalysts including dialkylzincs with primary alkyl group, their catalytic activity decreases with increasing number of carbon atom in the alkyl group with the following sequence： Y（CCl3COO）3-ZnEt2-glycerin 〉 Y（CCl3COO）3-Zn（n- Pr）2-glycerin〉Y（CCl3COO）3-Zn（n-Bu）2-glycerin. However, the alkyl group in the dialkylzinc does not influence the insertion of PO into the propagation chain end.

ELECTROCHEMICAL AND OPTICAL STUDY ON C_(60) FILM IN LiClO_4 POLYPROPYENE CARBONATE (PC) SOLUTION

For the first time we observed the electrochromism of C_(60) film intercalated by lithium and obtained some amount of intercalate Li_3C_(60) with cyclic voltammetry. The optical absorption properties of this intercalate have been studied.

One-pot Synthesis of Dimethyl Carbonate in the Presence of a Two-component Catalyst

The one-pot synthesis of dimethyl carbonate（DMC） with co-production of propy-lene carbonate（PC） and propylene glycol（PG） from propylene oxide（ PO）, carbon dioxide and methanol as the starting materials was investigated. The catalyst adopted here was a mixture of tetrabutyl ammonium bromide and sodium methoxide. It was found that un- der the reaction conditions of t = 150 ℃, p =3-4 MPa and 2 h, the PO conversion could reach 100%, the DMC, PC and the PG selectivities were 49. 7%, 42. 7% and 49. 8%, respectively, and the selectivity of by-products was below 10%.

Waste Management in Propylene Epoxidation Process with the Use of Supercritical Fluid Media

Experimental results on solubility of the styrene, phenol, methylphenylcarbinol, acetophenone, ethyl benzene, propylene glycol and molybdenum as a complex with Trilon B in supercritical CO2 obtained using a dynamic (flow) method are presented. The obtained data are described in the framework of Peng-Robinson equation. The results of the experients on the extraction of organic components from waste formed in the olefin epoxidation process at Nizhnekam-skneftekhim Inc., on the analysis of extract composition, and on the testing of the extract as an epoxidation catalyst are presented. The supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) process of epoxidation process waste was conducted in periodical and continuous mode. The analysis results of reaction product are given. Pilot experiments on dry sediment formation were conducted using Radio Frequency (RF) Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) of low pressure.

Boosting reversible charging of Li-ion batteries at low temperatures by a synergy of propylene carbonate-based electrolyte and defective graphite

Propylene carbonate(PC)-based electrolytes have exhibited significant advantages in boosting the low-temperature discharging of graphite-based Li-ion batteries.However,it is still unclear whether they can improve the charging property and suppress lithium plating.Studying this topic is challenging due to the problem of electrochemical compatibility.To overcome this issue,we introduced graphite with phase defects.The results show that the pouch-type full batteries using PC-based electrolyte exhibit steady performance over 500 cycles and can be reversibly charged over 30 times at-20℃ with an average Coulombic efficiency of 99.95%,while the corresponding value for the conventional ethylene carbonate(EC)-based electrolyte sample is only 31.20%.This indicates that the use of PC-based electrolyte significantly suppresses lithium plating during low-temperature charging.We further demonstrate that the improved performance is mainly attributed to the unique solvation structure,where PF-6more anions participate in solvation,leading to the formation of a stable F-rich solid state electrolyte interface on the graphite surface and a lower reduction tendency of Li+ions.This work inspires new ideas for the design of PC-based electrolytes for low-temperature charging and fast-charging batteries.

PC基电解液对Li/CrO_(x)一次电池高倍率性能的影响

Li/CrO_(x)电池具有高能量密度和优异的倍率性能,成为高性能一次锂电池的研究热点。而基于发展具有宽温域和高介电常数的碳酸丙烯酯(PC)电解液体系,对于开发功率高和环境耐受性强的锂一次电池具有重要的应用价值。在本工作中,我们研究了CrO_(x)在PC基电解液中的放电行为,筛选了适配于大电流放电的电解液体系:1 mol·L^(-1)LiTFSI PC:DOL(1,3-二氧环戊烷)=1:2;并揭示了在PC基电解液中影响CrO_(x)大电流放电的规律:Li^(+)溶剂化鞘层中溶剂分子配位数以及参与配位的粒子类型,会极大地影响Li/CrO_(x)电池体系的倍率放电性能。低的配位数以及阴离子参与的溶剂化鞘层结构更加适配Li/CrO_(x)电池体系,能够实现大电流放电。这些规律的认识对于推动PC基电解液应用于大倍率Li/CrO_(x)电池体系具有重要指导意义。