Total and partial erucate of pentaerythritol. Infrared spectroscopy study of relationship between structure, reactivity, and thermal properties

Abstract

Abstract Esters of neopentylpolyols are an important starting base for synthetic lubricants. These bulky esters are generally prepared by an esterification reaction between a carboxylic acid and a neopentylpolyol. Because neopentylpolyols have a number of primary alcohol sites, a variety of partial esters is formed before total esters. In the present study, we investigated the reaction between pentaerythritol and erucic acid. The composition of the reaction mixture in erucic acid, partial esters, and total esters was monitored by thin‐layer chromatography, coupled with flame‐ionization detection. The pure esters and the esters in solution at different concentrations in xylene at different temperatures were analyzed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Erucic acid and partial esters in xylene coexist in the free form and as bound complexes. These findings furthered understanding of the reactivity and thermal properties of the partial esters.