Esterification of Palmitic Acid over Acid Catalyst from Modified Bentonite

The modification of the natural bentonite by intercalation and pillarisation has been studied. The major end-uses for bentonite, especially in Indonesia, are in relatively low-technology applications. Because of high abundance of bentonite and its potential properties, it should be improved to be more valuable material, high-specification and high-value applications. This paper deals with modification of bentonite by indirect pillarisation. The first step was intercalation process to insert organic surfactant molecules (hexadecyltrimethylammonium, HDTMA) inside the clay molecules to get bigger pore size, and then the next step was pillarisation process using Fe and Zn cationic. The ratio of bentonite and intercalating agent or pillaring agent was 1 gr/50 ml. The mixture was agitated, and then the solid phase was washed with distilled water until free of chlorine ion. Then it was dried and calcined at 450°C for 6 hours in N2 and O2 atmosphere. The modified bentonites were characterized by FT-IR spectrometer, XRD diffractometer, and BET method. Their catalytic activity and selectivity were studied for Esterification of Palmitic Acid. This paper showed that the pillaring bentonites have good potential to catalyze palmitic acid esterification reaction. The results also showed that Fe-pillared bentonite was more active compare to that of Zn-pillared bentonite.