Scientists from India conducted an experiment to prepare functionalized castor oil derivatives with tunable physical properties by using heterogeneous acid and base catalysts. Epoxidized castor oil (ECO) was used as a raw material to prep
are the different functionalized castor oil derivatives namely ring-opened glyceryl ricinoleates, epoxy alkyl ricinoleates, and ring-opened alkyl ricinoleates, using two chemical reactions, ring opening and transesterification.
Among several acid catalysts screened, Amberlyst 15 showed maximum conversion for ring opening of ECO with methanol. By using CaAl-layered double hydroxide (LDH) derived oxides as base catalyst, maximum yield of epoxy alkyl ricinoleates were obtained through transesterification of ECO. The physical properties of these derivatives can be used to design tailor-make material for industrial needs.