| Popis: |
At the 7 International Conference on Microwave and High Frequency Heating (Valencia, Spain, 1999) experiments were reported showing a velocity increase of esterification of maleic anhydride with 2-ethylhexanol-1, under microwave irradiation [1]. Experiments were performed in a continuous stirred tank reactor in order to overcome the difficulty of measuring temperature with conventional thermometers or thermocouples subject to microwave irradiation. This paper describes a new set of experiments, aiming at a better understanding of the chemical kinetics of microwave enhanced esterification. The acquisition of a microwave compatible fiberoptic digital thermometer solved the question of temperature measurements in the presence of microwaves, making it possible to perform the same esterification reaction in a batch reactor, with shorter operation times and consuming less raw materials than required by using a continuous reactor. |
