Mg(OH)Cl/KI as a highly active heterogeneous catalyst for the synthesis of cyclic carbonates from CO2 and epoxides under solvent-free conditions

The combination of magnesium hydroxyl chloride [Mg(OH)Cl] with KI could efficiently catalyze the coupling reaction of carbon dioxide with epoxides to give the corresponding cyclic carbonates in good to excellent yields (75.0% - 98.3%) and high selectivity (99.6%) in the absence of organic solvents. The heterogeneous catalyst Mg(OH)Cl/KI could be reused at least six times almost without loss of the catalytic activity. The influence of some key factors (such as molar ratio of Mg(OH)Cl to KI, temperature, reaction time and CO2 pressure) on the reaction was also discussed.