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

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 (1–10 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.