Biocatalytic preparation of dichloropropyl acrylates. Application to the synthesis of poly(dichloropropyl acrylates)

The synthesis of dichloropropyl acrylates from dichloropropyl dodecanoates through a transesterification process using diverse commercial lipases and whole cells (fungal resting cells) is presented. The synthesis was carried out in a solvent-free media using a conventional batch system and a packed bed reactor (PBR). The effect of water activity on the process depended on the lipase used. The commercial enzyme CALB (Candida antarctica lipase B immobilized onto a macroporous acrylic resin) showed the best performance as a biocatalyst, achieving a yield of 50% and productivity of 7.2 μmol min−1 g−1 in the batch reactor and 33% and 35.8 μmol min−1 g−1 in the PBR. Finally, polymeric material was prepared by suspension polymerization of the dichloropropyl acrylates synthesized using PBR. Particles with diameters between 170 and 380 μm were obtained with a yield of 85% after 18 h reaction.