Glycerol conversion catalysed by sulfonated styrene-co-dimethacrylate: experiments and mathematical modeling

Abstract

The present research project is proposed to use catalysts of styrene crosslinked with dimethacrylates in the conversion of glycerol to products of commercial interest. It is intended to continue a previous study which involved the synthesis of a sulfonated resin, in which copolymerization and sulfonation variables were assessed and optimized. This study was developed according to FAPESP Project No. 2014/22080-9 and gave rise to a novel polymer catalyst which showed good performance in esterification reactions. The results described in the final report of this Project indicated that the crosslinker used in the support (ethylene glycol dimethacrylate - EGDMA) has positive effect on the accessibility to catalytic sites, and may be a source of new sites formed during the reaction. Based on these positive results, this new project has the objective of verifying tha catalytic activity of the catalyst on glycerol conversion and the possible formation of temporary sites (attraction of H+ by ester-like groups presente in the EGDMA) when the reaction involves an acid as reagent. For this aim, it is proposed to carry out the esterification reaction between glycerol and acetic acid, for example. Other reactions such as etherification and acetilation can also be explored in the present project. Besides the fundamental study of the catalyst properties, this project also takes into account the use of a biodiesel production byproduct (glycerol), whose demand has increased every year. Thus, it is proposed the study of a catalytic process to increase the conversion rate of glycerol through the use of a novel catalyst supported by polymeric resin. (AU)