Esterification of acrylic acid with 2-ethylhexan-1-ol: Thermodynamic and kinetic study

The activity and selectivity of polystyrene sulfonic acid resins (Amberlyst 39, Amberlyst 46, Amberlyst 70, and Amberlyst 131) were measured in the reaction of 2-ethylhexyl acrylate formation. The kinetics of the esterification of acrylic acid with 2-ethylhexan-1-ol was studied using Amberlyst 70 ion exchange resin (1a10 wt%) as a catalyst superior over a group of commercial catalysts. The 7: 1, 5: 1, 3: 1, 1: 1, 1: 3, 1: 5, and 1: 7 alcohol to acid molar ratio was used to carry out the reaction in an isothermal batch reactor at temperatures from 353 to 393 K. The studied mixtures are highly non-ideal, therefore, the kinetic equations and equilibrium parameters were expressed in terms of activities.