Transesterification of Ethyl-10-undecenoate Using a Cu-Deposited VO Catalyst as a Model Reaction for Efficient Conversion of Plant Oils to Monomers and Fine Chemicals.

Transesterification of ethyl-10-undecenoate (derived from castor oil) with 1,4-cyclohexanedimethanol over a recyclable Cu-deposited VO catalyst afforded 1,ω-diene, the corresponding cyclohexane-1,4-diylbis(methylene) bis(undec-10-enoate), a promising monomer for the synthesis of biobased polyesters, in an efficient manner. Deposition of Cu plays an important role in proceeding the reaction with high selectivity, and both the activity and the selectivity are preserved for five recycled runs by the addition of the substrates. The present catalyst was effective for transesterification with other alcohols, especially primary alcohols, demonstrating a possibility of using this catalyst for efficient conversion of plant oil to various fine chemicals.