Obtaining Epoxidized Monoalkyl Oleates of C2-C4 Alcohols Based on Waste Cooking Oil Using Strongly Acidic Ion Exchange Resins

The current study is devoted to the synthesis of epoxidized monoalkyl oleates of linear and branched C2-C4 alcohols based on wasted cooking oil using commercially available brands of strong acidic ion-exchange resins (non-porous gel Amberlite IR120 and KU-2-8ChS and porous macroreticular Purolite CT275). The process aimed to obtain oleoepoxides as promising bio-based platforms for further chemical modification. At first, corresponding monoalkyl oleates were synthesized via transesterification or esterification. Epoxidation was carried out at 40-60 °C for 4 h using oleate : CH3COOH : H2O2 with a molar ratio of 1 : 0.4 : 2.0. Using 10-11% (dry basis) of sulfocationites provided 96-100 % conversion and >99% selectivity. Halving the sulfocationite load resulted in a significant decrease in conversion (83-86%) for non-porous samples, and the same conversion for porous samples (99 %). The composition of the obtained products (epoxidized oleate content is above 80%) was determined by gas chromatography; the chemical structure was confirmed by 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy.