Thermokinetic prediction and safety evaluation for toluene sulfonation process and product using calorimetric technology

Toluene sulfonation is a typical synthetic process in the modern chemical industry. However, there are unexpected thermal hazards in this process, resulting in thermal runaway accidents. Aiming at the toluene sulfonation process’s thermal safety and its product p-toluenesulfonic acid’s thermal stability, this study adopted the reaction calorimeter and differential scanning calorimetry to test its thermal behaviour. A variety of nonisothermal methods were used to calculate the kinetic parameters. Through the autocatalytic model and n-order model simulations, the reaction mechanism was speculated. The comparison showed that the apparent activation energy values calculated by iso-conversional methods were more reliable. The findings of the study can provide helpful data and suggestions for the toluene sulfonation reaction and product safety to reduce the potential risks in the industrial process.