Glycerol carbonate (GC) was synthesized via transesterification of glycerol with dimethyl carbonate under mild conditions over
a series of base zeolites. It was found that the NaY zeolite exhibited a higher selectivity for GC (100%) than heterogeneous bases (such as
CaO and SrO) or homogeneous catalysts (such as NaOH and K2CO3). Further experiments over different base zeolites disclosed that this
transesterification reaction depended strongly on catalyst structure. Base zeolites with small pore diameter such as 3A, 4A, and NaZSM-5
were inactive, while NaY and Naâ with larger pore diameter exhibited excellent GC yields under mild conditions.