A Preliminary Investigation Concerning Metal Oxides as Catalysts for Esterification of Lauric Acid with Isopropanol
This paper reports the synthesis of isopropyl laurate while using a mixture of metal oxides as a catalyst. The best conversion value was obtained in the following conditions: 393 K, isopropanol:lauric acid molar ratio is 10:1, composition of the catalyst is 33 % CuO, 33 % Ag2O and 33 % Al2O3, catalyst/lauric acid ratio is 8 % (w/w), and reaction time 2 h. Isolation of the catalysts after esterification showed that the oxides were not converted into other materials.