Process intensification for the ethyl lactate synthesis : integrated pervaporat...

• Author(s): Pereira, C.S.M. ; Silva, V.M.T.M. ; Pinho, Simão ; Rodrigues, A.E.
• Date: 2011
• Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10198/10526
• Origin: Biblioteca Digital do IPB
• Subject(s): Ethyl lactate; Process intensification
• Document Type: Conference Object
• Language: English

Description

Ethyl lactate is an important organic ester, which is biodegradable, produced by renewable resources and can be used as food additive, perfumery, flavor chemicals, solvent and pharmaceutical preparations[1]. It is a green solvent and could replace a range of environment-damaging halogenated and toxic solvents (for example: Nmethylpyrrolidone, toluene)[2]. The conventional way to produce ethyl lactate is the esterification of lactic acid with ethanol in the presence of an acid catalyst, according to the reaction: Ethanol + Lactic Acid ¬¾H ®Ethyl Lactate + Water + The conversion of this reaction is limited by the chemical equilibrium and in order to obtain higher ethyl lactate yields it is necessary to shift the reaction towards products formation.