Mandelic acid (MA) an α hydroxycarboxylic
acid found in bitter
almonds. It has gained importance in recent years, especially due
to its use in the cosmetic industry. Separation processes of mandelic
acid have a critical point in the production stages obtained the product
form. In this study, extraction of mandelic acid from aqueous solutions
was carried out using five different concentrations of Amberlite LA-2
(LA2) solution. Dimethyl phthalate (DMP), methyl isobutyl ketone (MIBK),
2-octanone, 1-octanol, n-pentane, octyl acetate,
and toluene were used as diluents in the organic phase. The batch
extraction results of mandelic acid were obtained for process design.
The data were analyzed with respect to loading factor (Z), distribution coefficient (D), and extraction
efficiency (E). In addition, the overall extraction
constants, K
11, K
12, K
13, and K
23 have been determined for acid–amine complex.
The maximum removal of mandelic acid in this study is 92.75% with
MIBK and 0.57 mol·kg–1 initial concentration
of Amberlite LA-2.