Lactate production process

• Main Authors: Smith, Stephen Alexander Calder, Surman, Andrew James
• Format: Patent
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/114155/; http://www.google.com/patents/WO2014045036A1?cl=en

A process for producing a compound of formula (I) is provided. The process comprises reacting a mixture comprising a compound of formula (IIA) and a compound of formula (IIB) with an alkyl alcohol in the presence of a Candida antarctica lipase B enzyme to produce a product comprising the compound of formula (I) and the compound of formula (IIB); wherein R1 is C1 to C6 alkyl; and wherein R2 is H or C1 to C12 alkyl. Also provided are processes for the production of R-lactic acid, oligomeric R-lactic acid, R,R-lactide, poly-R-lactic acid, alkyl S-lactate, S-lactic acid, oligomeric S-lactic acid, S,S-lactide, poly S-lactic acid and stereocomplex polylactic acid.