Layered metal laurates as active catalysts in the methyl/ethyl esterification reactions of lauric acid

Abstract

In this work we report the synthesis, characterization and investigation of the catalytic activity of layered copper(II), manganese(II), lanthanum(III) and nickel(II) laurates in the methyl and ethyl esterification reactions of lauric acid. In the methyl esterification, conversions between 80 and 90% were observed for all catalysts, while for the ethyl esterification only manganese laurate showed reasonable catalytic activity, with conversions close to 75%. Reuse of copper and lanthanum laurates in three cycles of reaction was also investigated and both catalysts preserved the structure and retained catalytic activity close to that observed for the first reaction cycle. © 2012 Sociedade Brasileira de Química.