Vegetable oils are edible and inexpensive, but for many applications they don’t have the optimal industrial end-use properties.  We can expand the utility of vegetable oils by derivatizing them.  An environmentally friendly water-based pathway to form the amine or azide derivatives of soybean oil and fatty esters will be discussed. Only a small amount of an ionic liquid is needed as a catalyst to achieve high yields. The method of derivatization is cheap, easy, and environmentally friendly.  Note that the reaction discussed in this talk has not been previously reported. Thus, there should be a lot of potential in this new (and green) reaction. We have been targeting three application areas:  a) Lubricating oils – this technology can improve their oxidative stability by grafting an appropriate aromatic moiety onto the triglyceride. b) Personal care – we can graft specific active ingredients onto vegetable oils. c) Pharmaceuticals – Perhaps this technology enables drug molecules to be grafted onto vegetable oils for targeted delivery or topical use (e.g., on the skin).

Industrial applications of vegetable oil

Fall 2022 abstracts, posters, and presentations will launch in mid-September.

ACS Fall 2022

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.