Sulfonic acid functionalized poly(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate-1-vinyl-1, 2,4-triazole) as a high-performance solid acid catalyst for the esterification of lactic acid with methanol

Sulfonic acid functionalized poly(ethylene glycol dimethacrylate-1-vinyl-1,2,4-triazole), poly(EGDMA-VTAZ-SO 3 H), is evaluated in the esterification of lactic acid with methanol. From nitrogen physisorption data, high surface area (220 m 2 /g) and type IV isotherm are obtained. Conversion measurements indicate a stronger interaction of poly(EGDMA-VTAZ-20%SO 3 H) with water molecules than that occurring in poly(EGDMA-VTAZ-10%SO 3 H). Hence, the higher catalytic activity of poly(EGDMA-VTAZ-10%SO 3 H) is related to the more hydrophobic microenvironment of –SO 3 H sites, which reduces the acid site deactivation associated with adsorption of water generated during the reaction. Moreover, apparent activation energy is found to be 48.02 kJ mol −1 , which can be comparable with the literature values.