Process Optimization of Epoxidized Coffee Oil
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Date
2024-05
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Publisher
The Ohio State University
Abstract
The use of coffee oil to form biopolymers via epoxidation grants a novel use of spent coffee grounds, a waste product. One common method of epoxidation uses hydrogen peroxide and an organic acid such as formic acid. While the use of formic acid is more efficient, acetic acid is a desirable alternative due to its lower cost and reduced corrosivity, making it a better fit for metallic industrial reactors. The objectives of this project were to optimize several factors of the epoxidation process of coffee oil, including reaction time, temperature, and choice of acid. Additionally, the formation of an undesirable middle layer during extraction of the epoxide product was examined. It was hypothesized that acetic acid would yield a complete epoxidation after optimization of the process, and that middle layer formation would have a significant effect on the product yield. The epoxidation was done using coffee oil, hydrogen peroxide, and either 85% formic acid or glacial acetic acid. The success of the epoxidation was evaluated by process yield, measured by the mass of epoxide relative to the mass of coffee oil, as well as by reaction completion, which was determined using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectroscopy. Increasing the reaction time resulted in a higher degree of conversion for the formation of epoxides using both formic and acetic acid. However, it was also weakly associated with an increase in middle layer formation, as well as a decrease in product yield for epoxide processed with formic acid, but not with acetic acid. The reaction completion increased over time and appeared to plateau after 16 hours with formic acid and 20 hours for acetic acid, indicating completion of the reaction. Increasing the temperature to 70 °C and using acetic acid gave comparable results after 16 h as it did at 60 °C for 20 h. These results indicate that acetic acid may serve as a suitable alternative for formic acid, as it could achieve a similar reaction completion, while also increasing product yield as it was less prone to middle layer formation.
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Keywords
Food waste, Coffee, Process optimization, Bioplastics