Fatemeh Jamali - Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, ۸۴۱۵۴-۸۳۱۱۱ Isfahan, Iran
Alireza Najafi Chermahini - Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, ۸۴۱۵۴-۸۳۱۱۱ Isfahan, Iran
Neda Ayashi - Department of Chemistry, Isfahan University of Technology, ۸۴۱۵۴-۸۳۱۱۱ Isfahan, Iran

In this study, mesoporous zirconium phosphates (m-ZrPs) with a different molar ratio of phosphate to zirconium were synthesized and used as the heterogeneous catalyst for the production of n-butyl levulinate from levulinic acid. The catalysts were characterized using various techniques such as N۲ adsorption-desorption, XRD, FT-IR, ICP-OES, SEM, and TEM. The prepared catalysts were confirmed to possess the mesoporous structure with a high surface area. Among the synthesized catalysts, m-ZrP-۲ showed the best performance in the conversion of levulinic acid to n-butyl levulinate. The reaction conditions were optimized on parameters such as reaction time, temperature, amount of catalyst, and the molar ratio of LA to n-butanol. Temperature ۱۲۰ °C, reaction time ۷ hours, the ratio of acid to alcohol ۱:۹, and ۰.۰۱g catalyst were selected as the optimum conditions. In addition, the selected m-ZrP-۲ catalyst was successfully recycled for six consecutive cycles without significant loss in its activity.

Levulinic acid, Butyl levulinate, Mesoporous zirconium phosphate, Esterification, Biomass conversion