K-doped CuO/ZnO with dual active centers of synergism for highly efficient dimethyl carbonate synthesis

The application of heterogeneous catalysts in dimethyl carbonate (DMC) synthesis from methanol is hindered by low activation efficiency of methanol to methoxy intermediates (CH 3 O*), which is the key intermediate for DMC generation. Herein, a catalyst of alkali metal K anchored on the CuO/ZnO oxide is rationally designed for offering Lewis acid–base pairs as dual active centers to improve the activation efficiency of methanol. Characterizations of CO 2 -TPD, NH 3 -TPD, XPS, and DRIFTS revealed that the addition of Lewis base K observably boosted the dissociation of methanol and combined with Lewis acid CuO/ZnO oxide to adsorb the formed CH 3 O* stably, thus synergistically promoted the transesterification. Finally, the CuO/ZnO-9%K 2 O catalyst exhibited the optimal catalytic activity, achieving a high yield of 74.4% with an excellent selectivity of 98.9% for DMC at a low temperature of 90°C. The strategy of constructing Lewis acid–base pairs provides a reference for the design of heterogeneous catalysts.