Study of Soybean Oil Epoxidation: Effects of Sulfuric Acid and the Mixing Program

Epoxidized vegetable oils are largely employed as plasticizers instead of harmful phthalates, and they can be a sustainable choice to produce lubricants and intermediates. The aim of this work is to study the reaction of soybean oil epoxidation of soybean using safer reactants. The reaction was carried out using hydrogen peroxide 34 wt % and acetic acid instead of the commonly used hydrogen peroxide at 60 wt % and formic acid to reduce the risk of detonation and corrosion. Moreover, the study focuses on the efficacy of the presence of an acid catalyst and sulfuric acid and the effect of its concentration. It was found that it is not possible to carry out the process without acid catalyst with those reactants. In addition, a proper mixing program was set up to improve the selectivity of the reaction.