Premilinary Results: Heterogeneous Reaction of Epoxidation Palm Kernal Oil

Abstract

The epoxidized vegetables oils can be used a raw material for a broad range of products, from pharmaceutical and plastics to paint and adhesives. Epoxidation of oleic acid was carried out by using hydrogen peroxide as an oxygen donor and formic acid as an oxygen carrier in the presence of sulphuric acid act as catalyst. The crude oleic acid contained 75% oleic acid, 12.2% linoleic acid, 6.5% palmitic acid and 7.5% stearic acid, and had an iodine value of 98.99 g/100 g. The epoxidation of oleic acid with almost complete conversion of unsaturated carbon and negligible oxirane cleavage can be obtained by the in situ techniques. An analytical approach for the prediction of the partition coefficient for formic acid between oleic acid and water, dependent on temperature and composition, has been proposed.