Transesterification of soybean oil catalyzed by sulfated zirconia.
Two sulfated zirconias were synthesized and characterized by X-ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy. They were used as catalysts in the alcoholysis of soybean oil and in the esterification of oleic acid. Using sulfated zirconia prepared by the solvent-free method (S-ZrO(2)) as catalyst, the alcoholysis conversions of soybean oil under optimized conditions (120 degrees C, 1h and 5wt% of catalyst) were 98.6% (methanolysis) and 92% (ethanolysis), respectively. The esterification of oleic acid with methanol was complete after 2h. Zirconia sulfated by standard methods (SZ) had low activity in the methanolysis of soybean oil (conversion of 8.5%) and conventional zirconia (NS) was inactive for methanolysis under the conditions optimized for S-ZrO(2).
Garcia
Camila Martins
CM
Instituto de Química, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Caixa Postal 6154, 13084-862, Campinas, SP, Brazil.
Teixeira
Sergio
S
Marciniuk
Letícia Ledo
LL
Schuchardt
Ulf
U
D002384:Catalysis; D004951:Esterification; D013024:Soybean Oil / Q000737:chemistry*; D013431:Sulfates / Q000737:chemistry*; D015040:Zirconium / Q000737:chemistry*
D013431:Sulfates; D013024:Soybean Oil; D015040:Zirconium; C028541:zirconium oxide