Epoxidation of soybean oil with SO₃ H-functional ionic liquid as catalyst

Green technology for the preparation of epoxidized soybean oil (ESBO) is of significance. The epoxidation of soybean oil with peroxyacetic acid generated in situ from hydrogen peroxide and glacial acetic acid as monomers and SO₃H-functional ionic liquids 1-methyl-3-(3-sulfopropyl)-imidazolium hydrogen sulfate (C₃SO₃HMIMHSO₄ ) as catalyst was studied. The influence of stirring speed, hydrogen peroxide-to-ethylenic unsaturation molar ratio, acetic acid-to-ethylenic unsaturation molar ratio, catalyst loading and temperature on the relative percentage conversion to oxirane and the recycling properties of catalyst were examined. The rate constant and activation energy for epoxidation of soybean oil were found to be of the order of 10^-5.L/(mol·s) and 51.4.kJ/mol, respectively. The thermodynamic parameters of enthalpy, entropy and free energy of activation were found to be of 48.6.kJ/mol, -191.7.J/(mol·K) and 112.2.kJ/mol, respectively.