Thermodynamic Assessment of Chemical Equilibrium for the Synthesis of Solketal in the Liquid Phase

Abstract

The synthesis of solketal is one of the innovative routes of glycerol valorization to value-added products, and the simulation of the process requires the knowledge of thermodynamic properties that are not still available in the literature. In this work, the specific heat capacity as a function of temperature and the enthalpy and entropy of formation of all compounds involved in the reaction were calculated by employing a second-order group-additivity method. Expressions for the enthalpy of reaction and equilibrium constant as a function of temperature were also obtained. The glycerol conversion at equilibrium was calculated at different temperatures, pressures, acetone/glycerol molar ratios, and initial water contents, considering the nonideality of the liquid phase.