Center of Excellence

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    A cleaner enzymatic approach for producing non-phthalate plasticiser to replace toxic-based phthalates
    (Springer Verlag, 2020) Hosney H.; Al-Sakkari E.G.; Mustafa A.; Ashour I.; Mustafa I.; El-Shibiny A.; Chemical Engineering Department; Faculty of Engineering; Minia University; El-Minia; Egypt; Chemical Engineering Department; Faculty of Engineering; Cairo University; Giza; 12613; Egypt; Environmental Engineering Program; Zewail City of Science and Technology; October Gardens; 6th of October; Giza; 12578; Egypt; Faculty of Engineering; October University for Modern Sciences and Arts; MSA; Giza; Egypt; Center of Excellence; October University for Modern Sciences and Arts (MSA); Giza; Egypt; Biomedical Engineering Department; Faculty of Engineering; Helwan University; Cairo; Egypt; Center for Microbiology and Phage Therapy; Zewail City of Science and Technology; October Gardens; 6th of October; Giza; 12578; Egypt
    Abstract: Dioctyl phthalate (DOP) is industrially commonly used as a polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plasticiser. As DOP does not form a chemical link with PVC, it migrates from flexible PVC segments into the media in contact, a matter that arose concerns due to its noxious effect. Despite the introduction of several non-DOP-based plasticisers recently, most of these new plasticisers are petroleum derived, which is a non-renewable resource. Accordingly, this research aims to produce a natural-based plasticiser using clean production method. Epoxidised 2-ethylhexyl oleate (E-2-EHO) was produced through an esterification and epoxidation reaction between oleic acid and 2-ethyl hexanol; both reactions occur simultaneously, in the presence of hydrogen peroxide as oxygen donor in a solvent-free environment. Candida antarctica lipase (Novozym 435) was used as a cleaner biocatalyst. Several reaction parameters that affect the synthesis of (E-2-EHO) were analysed using response surface methodology based on full factorial central composite design for four variables. The maximum experimental conversion was 94.2% while the value of the predicted conversion was 95.3%. The operation conditions were a temperature of 65��C, enzyme load of 4 wt%, alcohol-to-oleic acid molar ratio of 4:1, hydrogen peroxide-to-C=C molar ratio of 0.5:1, molecular sieve/g acid of 0.425�g and reaction time of 2�h. In addition, the plasticising effectiveness of (E-2-EHO) to substitute toxic DOP was studied. Comparison with conventional DOP highlighted that (E-2-EHO) had superior and significantly reduced glass transition temperature (tg) and improved mechanical properties. In the proposed study, (E-2-EHO) was proved to be an efficient substitute to DOP by replacing up to 80% of the total plasticiser. Moreover, the product yield obtained in a short time reaction along with the proven stability of Novozym 435 during operation both showed that this ecofriendly and maintainable alternative is favourable when used in large-scale applications. Graphic abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]. � 2019, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.