Kinetics of esterification of benzyl alcohol with acetic acid catalysed by cation‐exchange resin (Amberlyst‐15)

Abstract Esterification of benzyl alcohol with acetic acid catalysed by Amberlyst‐15 (cation‐exchange resin) was carried out in a batch reactor in the liquid phase in the temperature range 328–359 K and at 1 atm. The reaction rate increased with increase in catalyst concentration and reaction temperature. Resin particle size and stirrer speed had virtually no effect on the rate under the experimental conditions. The rate data were correlated with a kinetic model based on homogeneous reaction. The apparent activation energy was found to be 73.3 kJ mol−1 for the formation of benzyl acetate.