The
chemoenzymatic conversion of cyclohexanone to ε-caprolactone
(1.25 M) mediated by immobilized lipase from T. laibacchi was successfully achieved with a yield of 98.6%, which is much higher
than that in previous studies. A proposed kinetic model consisting
of two enzymatic reactions catalyzed by the lipase and one chemical
reaction was developed, which fitted the experimental data very well.
It was concluded that the enzymatic oxidation of ethyl acetate using
urea hydrogen peroxide (UHP) to generate in situ peracetic acid mediated
by the lipase may follow an irreversible ping-pong three–four
mechanism with substrate inhibitions, which is proposed herein for
the first time. Also, the oxidation of cyclohexanone to ε-caprolactone
by peracetic acid in a chemical fashion may follow a power law. Finally,
the reaction of formed acetic acid with UHP to form peracetic acid
catalyzed by the lipase may follow an irreversible ping-pong Bi–Bi
mechanism with substrate inhibitions. Reaction kinetic data reveal
that UHP and acetic acid might have strong substrate inhibition, while
peracetic acid might have no product inhibition. Results of enzyme
stability test suggest that it is reasonable to adopt a simple exponential
equation as the inactivation model of the lipase. The effect of Michaelis–Menten
interaction on the reaction rate could be neglected due to the strong
substrate inhibition, which makes the constant similar to Michaelis–Menten
zero. The yield of in situ polymerization was significantly increased
from 61.3% to 92.4% under the optimum conditions obtained in this
study.