Process and Energy Intensification of Glycerol Carbonate Production from Glycerol and Dimethyl Carbonate in the Presence of Eggshell-Derived CaO Heterogeneous Catalyst
Wanichaya Praikaew,
Worapon Kiatkittipong,
Farid Aiouache,
Vesna Najdanovic-Visak,
Kanokwan Ngaosuwan,
Doonyapong Wongsawaeng,
Jun Wei Lim,
Su Shiung Lam,
Kunlanan Kiatkittipong,
Navadol Laosiripojana,
Sunya Boonyasuwat,
Suttichai Assabumrungrat
Affiliations
Wanichaya Praikaew
Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Technology, Silpakorn University, Nakhon Pathom 73000, Thailand
Worapon Kiatkittipong
Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Industrial Technology, Silpakorn University, Nakhon Pathom 73000, Thailand
Farid Aiouache
Engineering Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YW, UK
Vesna Najdanovic-Visak
Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, Energy & Bioproducts Research Institute, Aston University, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK
Kanokwan Ngaosuwan
Division of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Rajamangala University of Technology Krungthep, Bangkok 10120, Thailand
Doonyapong Wongsawaeng
Research Unit on Plasma Technology for High-Performance Materials Development, Department of Nuclear Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
Jun Wei Lim
HICoE-Centre for Biofuel and Biochemical Research, Department of Fundamental and Applied Sciences, Institute of Self-Sustainable Building, Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS, Seri Iskandar 32610, Malaysia
Su Shiung Lam
Higher Institution Centre of Excellence (HICoE), Institute of Tropical Aquaculture and Fisheries (AKUATROP), Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, Kuala Nerus 21030, Malaysia
Kunlanan Kiatkittipong
Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, King Mongkut’s Institute of Technology Ladkrabang, Bangkok 10520, Thailand
Navadol Laosiripojana
The Joint Graduate School of Energy and Environment, King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi, Bangkok 10140, Thailand
Center of Excellence in Catalysis and Catalytic Reaction Engineering, Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok 10330, Thailand
The process and energy intensifications for the synthesis of glycerol carbonate (GC) from glycerol and dimethyl carbonate (DMC) using an eggshell-derived CaO heterogeneous catalyst were investigated. The transesterification reaction between glycerol and DMC was typically limited by mass transfer because of the immiscible nature of the reactants. By varying the stirring speed, it was observed that the mass transfer limitation could be neglected at 800 rpm. The presence of the CaO solid catalyst made the mass transport-limited reaction process more prominent. Mass transfer intensification using a simple kitchen countertop blender as an alternative to overcome the external mass transfer limitation of a typical magnetic stirrer was demonstrated. A lower amount of the catalyst and a shorter reaction time were required to achieve 93% glycerol conversion or 91% GC yield, and the turnover frequency (TOF) increased almost 5 times from 1.5 to 7.2 min−1 when using a conventional magnetic stirrer and countertop blender, respectively. In addition, using a simple kitchen countertop blender with 7200 rpm, the reaction temperature of 60 °C could be reached within approximately 3 min without the need of a heating unit. This was the result of the self-frictional heat generated by the high-shear blender. This was considered to be heat transfer intensification, as heat was generated locally (in situ), offering a higher homogeneity distribution. Meanwhile, the trend toward energy intensification was promising as the yield efficiency increased from 0.064 to 2.391 g/kJ. A comparison among other process intensification techniques, e.g., microwave reactor, ultrasonic reactor, and reactive distillation was also rationalized.
