Remarkable effects of deep eutectic solvents on the esterification of lactic acid with ethanol over Amberlyst-15

Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) are widely used in numerous reactions both as a solvent and a catalyst. In this study, different types of DESs were investigated as a supplementary component for Amberlyst-15 to enhance its catalytic activity in the esterification reaction of lactic acid with ethanol. The effects of the following parameters such as DES type, choline chloride : glycerol (ChCl-Gly) (1 : 2) amount, molar ratio of reactants, temperature and agitation rate on the initial rate of reaction and yield of ethyl lactate were investigated. According to the results, DESs alone did not have any catalytic effect on the esterification; however, DESs together with Amberlyst-15 provided a significant increase in the initial rate of reaction and yield. The activation energy of the reaction decreased significantly with the combined use of Amberlyst-15 and ChCl-Gly (1 : 2). Internal and external mass transfer limitations were found to be negligible under optimum reaction conditions.