Sustainable Solid Catalysts for Cyclic Carbonate Synthesis from CO2 and Epoxide

As a major contributor to greenhouse effect, detrimental influence of CO2 has received more and more attention. Meanwhile, CO2 is also a valuable C1 building block, with several distinguished features such as low cost, nontoxicity, nonflammability, renewal, abundance. CO2 fixation is one of the most important priorities of the scientific community dedicated to reduce global warming. The last few decades have witnessed enormous attention utilizing CO2 to produce a variety of organic molecules, such as cyclic carbonates, which hold diverse applications as polar aprotic solvents, intermediates for organic and polymeric synthesis, and chemical ingredients for pharmaceutical/ fine chemicals in biomedical applications, electrolytic elements of lithium secondary batteries. Development of sustainable solid catalysts for the cycloaddition of epoxide with CO2 into cyclic carbonates is of paramount importance from a viewpoint of C1 chemistry and green chemistry. In this mini-review, we would like to update the recent advances in development of efficient heterogeneous catalysts including polymeric ionic liquids, metal organic frameworks, conjugated microporous polymer, polyamines, functionalized ion-exchange resins, polystyrene-supported ionic liquids, chitosan-based heterogeneous catalysts, silica-supported catalysts, magnetic nanoparticle supported catalysts, metal oxide and polyoxometalate, and others for the cycloaddition of epoxide with CO2, and we hope this presentation will stimulate further interest in chemical conversion of CO2 using sustainable catalysts.