Synthesis of Esters From Acetic Acid With Methanol, Ethanol, Propanol, Butanol, and Isobutyl Alcohol Catalyzed by Solid Superacid1

A solid superacid catalyst, which was obtained by exposing Zr(OH)4 to IN H2SO4 and then calcining in air at 500–750°C, was found to be highly active for the heterogeneous title reactions at 30–45°C. The reactions with the used catalyst gave identical results with those using freshly activated catalyst.