Titanium-silica catalysts for the production of fully epoxidised fatty acid methyl esters

Grafted titanium-containing mesoporous silica catalysts were used in the selective epoxidation of C-18 unsaturated fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs). High yields in mono- and diepoxide derivatives were obtained under acid-free reaction conditions with TBHP as oxidant. Ti-MCM-41 showed the best performance in terms of activity over the three FAMEs. Easy separation of the desired products and recycling of the catalyst were demonstrated.