Kinetics of epoxidation of jatropha oil with peroxyacetic and peroxyformic acid catalysed by acidic ion exchange resin

The kinetics of epoxidation of jatropha oil by peroxyacetic/peroxyformic acid, formed in situ by the reaction of aqueous hydrogen peroxide and acetic/formic acid, in the presence of an acidic ion exchange resin as catalyst in or without toluene, was studied. The presence of an inert solvent in the reaction mixture appeared to stabilise the epoxidation product and minimise the side reaction such as the opening of the oxirane ring. The effect of several reaction parameters such as stirring speed, hydrogen peroxide-to-ethylenic unsaturation molar ratio, acetic/formic acid-to-ethylenic unsaturation molar ratio, temperature, and catalyst loading on the epoxidation rate as well as on the oxirane ring stability and iodine value of the epoxidised jatropha oil were examined. The multiphase process consists of a consecutive reaction, acidic ion exchange resin catalysed peroxyacid formation followed by epoxidation. The catalytic reaction of peroxyacetic/peroxyformic acid formation was found to be characterised by adsorption of only acetic (or formic) acid and peroxyacetic/peroxyformic acid on the active catalyst sites, and the irreversible surface reaction was the overall rate determining step. The proposed kinetic model takes into consideration two side reactions, namely, epoxy ring opening involving the formation of hydroxy acetate and hydroxyl groups and the reaction of the peroxyacid and epoxy group. The kinetic and adsorption constants of the rate equations were estimated by the best fit using nonlinear regression method. Good agreement between experimental and predicted data validated the proposed kinetic model. From the estimated kinetic constants, the apparent activation energy for epoxidation reaction was found to be 53.6 kJ/mol. This value compares well with those reported by other investigators for the same reaction over similar catalysts.