The
chemical industry is facing a major challenge in the design
of heterogeneous catalysts for CO2 activation and valorization.
The modification of CeO2 nanorods with divalent transition
metal ions (M = Zn, Cu, and Ni) resulted in the enhancement of oxygen
vacancies, which improved the activation of CO2. The results
revealed that based on the electronic properties of dopants and their
coordination with the support, the nature of active sites can be tuned
on the surface of the catalyst. Zn-doped CeO2 nanorods
exhibited significantly higher activity for glycerol carbonate synthesis
as Zn enhances the surface reducibility of Ce4+. 2-cyanopyridine
(dehydrating agent) reacts with water to give 2-picolinamide, which
influences the conversion of glycerol. The catalysts were characterized
extensively by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy,
N2-sorption, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, H2-temperature programmed reduction, Raman spectroscopy, and NH3–CO2 temperature programmed desorption techniques.
Under optimized conditions; 90.4% glycerol conversion and 89.5% yield
towards glycerol carbonate were achieved.
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