Direct Hydration of β-Caryophyllene

Abstract

This study of β-caryophyllene hydration to produce β-caryophyllene alcohol was carried out catalyzed by strong acidic cation exchange resin NKC-9. The effects of different parameters such as agitation speed, catalyst type, catalyst loading, mass ratio of the reactants, temperature, and reaction time on the conversion of β-caryophyllene and yield of β-caryophyllene alcohol in a stirred-tank reactor have been investigated to obtain the optimal conditions. Under the optimal conditions (catalyst loading 20%(w/w), nβ-caryophyllene/nwater 1/1, reaction temperature 363.15 K, reaction time 30–40 min), the experiment was then carried out in a pilot-scale stirred tank reactor and in a novel pilot-scale jet reactor respectively to achieve excellent performance. The β-caryophyllene alcohol has been purified by rectifying column and recrystallized. A pseudohomogeneous (PH) model was used to correlate the kinetic data in the temperature range from 333.15 to 363.15 K. The estimated kinetic parameters make the calculated...