Synthesis of n-butyl acetate over activated carbon supported copper p-toluene sulfonate

Activated carbon supported copper p-toluene sulfonate was prepared by impregnation method and used as a catalyst for esterification.The influence of copper p-toluene sulfonate loadings,catalyst dosage and reaction time on esterification yield was investigated using synthesis of n-butyl acetate as the model reaction.The fresh and used catalysts were characterized by XRD.The experimental results indicated that copper p-toluene sulfonate supported on activated carbon exhibited excellent catalytic activity for synthesis of n-butyl acetate,with esterification yield of up to 93.1 % under the reaction condition as follows:copper p-toluene sulfonate loadings=20% ,catalyst dosage 1.2 g,reaction time 150 min,n-butanol to acetic acid molar ratio 1.5:1.The catalyst was repeatedly usable.