The polymeric quaternary ammonium salt supported on silica gel as catalyst for the efficient synthesis of cyclic carbonate

Abstract A polymeric quaternary ammonium salt, polydiallyldimethylammonium bromide (PDDA-Br), was supported on silica gel and employed as a recyclable heterogeneous catalyst for the catalytic synthesis of cyclic carbonate. The supported catalysts had been characterized by FT-IR, XRD, TGA and SEM methods. It was observed that PDDA-Br, silica and Lewis acid exhibited strong synergistic effect for the cycloaddition reaction. The addition of Lewis acid like ZnBr 2 , ZnCl 2 and FeCl 3 AlCl 3 would improve the catalytic activity significantly. Especially, the combination of PDDA-Br with ZnBr 2 afforded the most efficient catalyst for the cycloaddition reaction. Silica gel has high BET surface area and allowed good dispersion of PDDA-Br and ZnBr 2 . Moreover, the as-prepared catalyst was highly stable and leaching-resistance. It could be reused at least 10 times without any loss of activity.