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Scale Continuous Microwave Dry‐Media Reactor – Part II: Application to Waxy Esters Production
Author(s) -
Esveld E.,
Chemat F.,
Haveren J. van
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
chemical engineering and technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.403
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1521-4125
pISSN - 0930-7516
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1521-4125(200005)23:5<429::aid-ceat429>3.0.co;2-t
Subject(s) - catalysis , yield (engineering) , dry media reaction , reaction rate , chemistry , chemical engineering , solvent , stearic acid , distillation , batch reactor , microwave , organic chemistry , materials science , order of reaction , reaction rate constant , composite material , kinetics , physics , quantum mechanics , engineering
The solvent free esterification reaction between stearic acid and stearyl alcohol has been examined with a montmorillonite clay as catalyst. To aim for industrial application the system has been studied on reaction rate, product purity, catalyst behavior and water removal as function of the process conditions. To avoid an etherification side reaction and to aim for the highest reaction rate, the temperature should be strictly maintained at 170 °C. This is provided on larger scale by the application of microwave heating. Although the examined Brønsted acid clay was found to lose its catalytic activity at very low water activities, a yield of 95 % pure stearyl stearate can be obtained by simply filtering of the clay without solvent extraction or distillation. The “waxy” esterification reaction was investigated with the pilot plant continuous microwave dry‐media reactor (CMDR). The reaction time needed for 95 % yield was reduced by a factor 20–30 in comparison with industrial conventional reactors. This was due to the more homogeneous heat transfer of microwaves, which allows to reach a higher bulk temperature.