Issue 9/2019 - New low-temperature esterification catalyst developed

Recently, Beijing University of Chemical Technology and Anyang Normal University have developed a new type of catalyst
.
The catalyst can improve the reaction efficiency of plasticizers diisooctyl phthalate (DOP) and diisooctyl terephthalate (DOTP) and reduce reaction energy consumption
.

The catalyst has two major characteristics: first, the esterification temperature is lower than the boiling point of isooctanol, which can solve the problems of high energy consumption and low reaction efficiency caused by isooctanol always in the "evaporation-condensation-reflux" state during esterification; Second, the catalyst is always in a solid state before and after the reaction, and can be recovered by simple filtration after the end of the reaction, and the economic benefits are significantly improved
.
At the same time, due to the reduction of the reaction temperature, the color of the product is good, and it is expected to eliminate the decolorization process
of activated carbon.

The chemical composition of the catalyst is organic acid titanium salt, which is used in the DOP and DOPP production process at the same or lower amount than the current titanate catalyst, and the dieester temperature is reduced from 220 °C ~ 240 °C to 145 °C ~ 155 °C, thereby greatly reducing the reaction energy consumption and isooctanol loss
.