Epoxidation of vegetable oils in continuous device: kinetics, mass transfer and reactor modelling
Tommaso Cogliano, Vincenzo Russo, Kari Eränen, Riccardo Tesser, Martino Di Serio, Tapio Salmi
Abstract
Epoxides are an attracting class of molecules thanks to their highly reactivity given by the strain three-terms ring. For this reason, epoxides are important intermediates for the synthesis of several organic compounds. Epoxidized vegetable oils (EVOs) obtained from biomass, represent a noteworthy source for valuable chemicals. EVOs have already been successfully applied as stabilizers and scavengers in PVC and, after follow-up reactions, as plasticizers in PVC as well as intermediates to produce polyurethane. However, the industrial production of EVOs still relies on a cumbersome and dangerous semibatch technology, limiting the productivity of this platform chemical. A new, continuous and safe technology for the production of EVOs from non-edible vegetable oils was developed in this work. Cardoon seed oil was used as a model system. A continuous reactor configuration consisting of a packed column, was constructed and its performance was successfully demonstrated, leading to double bond conversions exceeding 95 % and epoxide selectivities 90 % at 40 °C, clearly exceeding the performance of the current semibatch process. The reaction system was studied in detail and a dynamic liquid–liquid reactor model was developed, based on the intrinsic kinetics, interfacial mass transfer and axial dispersion effects.