Martin Novick Group 14, Chemical Engineering Laboratory Submitted to Prof. David B. Henthorn September 25, 2012 Summary The goal of this project was to determine the pre-exponential factor, k o , the activation energy, E, and the reaction rate constants, k, of the saponification process of ethyl acetate using sodium hydroxide (NaOH) at 5 temperature between 15 and 25 degrees Celsius. Two trails were performed at temperatures 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24 degrees Celsius. The main equipment of the project were the jacketed beaker batch reactor and the LabPro conductivity probe. The solution’s conductivity throughout the reaction was collected and plotted in a linearized plot against time to retrieve ������ value for each trial. The rate law was assumed to be ������������������������ = −������������ ������������ ������������������ , where ������������������ and ������������������ are the concentrations of sodium hydroxide and ethyl acetate respectively. The ln k) values were plotted against the inverse temperatures to ( linearize the Arrhenius equation. The k o value and E value from the linearized Arrhenius plot were found to be 15 ± 3M −1 s −1 and −36402 ± 8191j × mol−1 respectively. The E value being negative suggests the reaction is exothermic. The large standard errors of the ������������ and ������ values were probably caused by the low number of data points collected or the assumed rate law was wrong.
Introduction The objective of this project was to determine the pre-exponential factor, k o , the activation energy, E, and the reaction rate constants, k, of the saponification process of ethyl acetate using sodium hydroxide (NaOH). Saponification is a chemical process heavily used in industry, especially in soap production. Knowing the effects of temperature on the reaction rate allows better control over the reaction process and find the optimizing point of production. The right temperature maximizes production
References: [1] Crismyre, Bobby, Do, Bryan, and Kronmiller, Mandy. “Ethyl Acetate – NaOH Reaction Kinetics Experiment Standard Operating Procedures,” (2010) [2] Julio F. Mata-Segreda, Hydroxide as a General Base in the Saponification of Ethyl Acetate. Journal of the American Chemical Society, (2010), 124 (10), 2259-2262. [3] Keusch Fachdidaktik Chemie. “Reaction Second Order,” Institute of Organic Chemistry, Universität Regensburg. [4] Schmidt, Larry D. “The Engineering of Chemical Reactions,” 2 Ed. Press, New York (2005) Oxford University 10