Study of auto-accelerated reactions in heterogeneous liquid/liquid mixture: Reaction products effects on mass transfer kinetics

The alkaline hydrolysis of aromatic esters exhibits auto-accelerated kinetics when performed under two phase conditions. This auto-acceleration behavior is linked to reaction products effects (surfactant and co-solvent) on mass transfer kinetics. The co-solvent increases the equilibrium concentration of organic compounds in aqueous solution, while the surfactant modifies the mass transfer coefficient and interfacial area. In this research work, the selected reaction is the alkaline hydrolysis of methyl benzoate carried out in a calorimetric reactor Mettler RC1 in isothermal semi-batch mode. The parameters estimation of mass transfer and chemical kinetics has been conducted using thermal power profile. Two functions—giving the evolution during reaction of the mass transfer coefficient and the equilibrium concentration—are proposed accordingly to surfactant and co-solvent concentrations.