Determination of thermodynamic properties of D-sorbitol dehydration to produce D-isosorbide

Abstract

This work concerns the synthesis of the compound isosorbide which is a product with a wide range of applications in the industry. One of the most interesting applications from an environmental point of view is its use for the synthesis of polymers as a replacement of fossil derivates such as bisphenol A. Processes like this have recently gained a lot of interest due to environmental issues that concern society. Therefore, the study and development of alternative renewable energy processes to reduce the environmental impact of the industries is of great importance. The present work studies the thermodynamics of the double dehydration reaction of sorbitol to isosorbide. A series of group contribution methods have been considered in order to estimate the thermodynamic parameters of the compounds involved in reaction network. These parameters have been used to determine the equilibrium constant of each reaction and have been compared to two other non-experimental studies. The thermodynamic analysis shows a discrepancy between the studies, on whether the dehydration of sorbitol reactions are endothermic or exothermic, and consequently on the magnitude of the equilibrium constants.