Epoxidation of karanja (Pongamia glabra) oil by H2O2

Epoxidation of karanja oil (KO), a nondrying vegetable oil, was carried out with peroxyacetic acid that was generated in situ from aqueous hydrogen peroxide and glacial acetic acid. KO contained 61.65% oleic acid and 18.52% linoleic acid, respectively, and had an iodine value of 89 g/100 g. Unsaturated bonds in the oil were converted to oxirane by epoxidation. Almost complete epoxidation of ethylenic unsaturation was achieved. For example, the iodine value of the oil could be reduced from 89 to 19 by epoxidation at 30°C. The effects of temperature, hydrogen peroxide-to-ethylenic unsaturation ratio, acetic acid-to-ethylenic unsaturation ratio, and stirring speed on the epoxidation rate and on oxirane ring stability were studied. The rate constant and activation energy for epoxidation of KO were 10⁻⁶ L·mol⁻¹·s⁻¹ and 14.9 kcal·mol⁻¹, respectively. Enthalpy, entropy, and free energy of activation were 14.2 kcal·mol⁻¹, −51.2 cal·mol⁻¹·K⁻¹, and 31.1 kcal·mol⁻¹, respectively. The present study revealed that epoxides can be developed from locally available natural renewable resources such as KO.