Optimization of epoxidation of ricinoleic acid methyl ester by hydrogen peroxide and phase‐transfer catalyst using response surface methodology

The epoxidation of ricinoleic acid methyl ester (RAME) has been investigated using an environmentally friendly oxidant (i.e., hydrogen peroxide) and a phase‐transfer catalyst ([π‐C5H5N(CH2)15CH3]3[PW4O16]) in dichloroethane. The response surface methodology (RSM), based on the Box–Behnken design was used to assess individual and interactive effects of the process variables and to optimize the epoxidation reaction condition. The coefficient of determination (R2 = 0.9544) obtained from analysis of the variance confirmed the suitability of the fitted model. The RSM analysis results indicated that the molar ratio of H2O2 to CC bonds and the reaction temperature are the most significant (P