Heterogeneous reaction kinetics of epoxide-functionalized regenerated cellulose membrane and aliphatic amine

The reaction kinetics of an epoxide-functionalized regenerated cellulose membrane with excess aliphatic amine are examined using differential scanning calorimetry. Both isothermal and dynamic experiments are analyzed. The reaction is found to follow first-order autocatalytic kinetics. The activation energy based on five different methods ranges from 77.0 to 79.7 kJ/mol, indicating that the apparent activation energy for the heterogeneous epoxy/aliphatic amine reaction is considerably higher than the values reported in the literature for the homogeneous reaction.