Experimental study and kinetic modeling of the oxidative cleavage reaction of oleic acid using POM@NENU (Cu) as a catalyst

• Grant number: 25/06086-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2025
• End date: June 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Chemical Engineering - Chemical Technology
• Principal Investigator: Gustavo Vieira Olivieri
• Grantee: Vinicius Davoli Grego
• Host Institution: Centro Universitário FEI (UNIFEI). Campus de São Bernardo do Campo. São Bernardo do Campo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Chemical reactions involving vegetable oils present products of particular interest due to their alignment with Green Chemistry principles, due to the use of renewable raw materials and the biodegradability observed in many of their derivatives. Among the possible reactions, oxidative cleavage can be highlighted, which, when starting from oleic acid, produces pelargonic acid and azelaic acid, which have applications in several areas (pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, agriculture, polymer production, etc.). The literature presents studies that demonstrate oxidative cleavage. However, kinetic data, which are essential for the design of industrial chemical reactors and prospecting for large-scale processes, are scarce for the reaction in question. Furthermore, after a long bibliographical search, nothing was found on the use of metal-organic structures containing encapsulated polyoxametalates as catalysts for this reaction. Therefore, the present project aims to perform experiments on the oxidative cleavage of oleic acid using hydrogen peroxide and the POM@NENU (Cu) catalyst, taking into account the effects of temperature, catalyst proportion and reagent proportion in the experimental design. The reaction will be studied and aliquots will be collected at predetermined time intervals for analysis via gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results will be discussed in terms of oleic acid conversion and will be used to analyze the reaction mechanism and perform kinetic modeling of the process, estimating the reference kinetic and equilibrium constants, as well as activation energies and adsorption enthalpies. The values ¿¿will be estimated using Matlab software. (AU)