Preparation supported heteropoly (acid)/polyaniline catalysts and catalytic synthesis of tributyl citrate

A series of polyaniline supported heteropoly acids were prepared through a simple method at room temperature. The obtained heterogeneous catalysts were comprehensively characterized by powder FTIR spectroscopy, UV-vis spectra, NH(3) temperature programmed desorption (TPD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The influence of various process parameters such as heteropoly loading (10 to 25 wt%), catalyst amount (3–5%), molar ratio of n-butanol to citric acid (3 to 5), and reaction time (3.5–12 h) have been investigated over heteropoly/polyaniline catalysts with the aim to maximize citric acid conversion and tributyl citrate selectivity. The different catalytic tests has shown that the catalyst exhibits high conversion and selectivity by using the as-prepared heteropoly/polyaniline catalysts for esterification under appropriate conditions. The present method of using 20% heteropoly/polyaniline catalyst for the synthesis of tributyl citrate would be environmentally benign in the reusability of catalyst.