Alumina/silica supported K2CO3 as a catalyst for biodiesel synthesis from sunflower oil

The new type of catalyst for fatty acid methyl esters (FAME or biodiesel) synthesis with K₂CO₃ as active component on alumina/silica support was synthesized using sol–gel method. Corresponding catalyst (xerogel) was prepared by 12 h drying the wet gel in air at 300 °C, 600 °C or 1000 °C at atmospheric pressure. The catalysts activity in the methanolysis of sunflower oil was compared to the activity of the pure K₂CO₃. The effects of various reaction variables on the yield of FAME were investigated. It was found that the temperature of 120 °C and methanol to oil molar ratio of 15:1, are optimal conditions for FAME synthesis with synthesized catalyst. Repeated use of same amount of catalyst indicated that effect of potassium leaching obviously existed leading to decrease of catalyst activity.     

Microwave assisted alkali-catalyzed transesterification of Pongamia pinnata seed oil for biodiesel production

In this study, microwave assisted transesterification of Pongamia pinnata seed oil was carried out for the production of biodiesel. The experiments were carried out using methanol and two alkali catalysts i.e., sodium hydroxide (NaOH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH). The experiments were carried out at 6:1 alcohol/oil molar ratio and 60 °C reaction temperature. The effect of catalyst concentration and reaction time on the yield and quality of biodiesel was studied. The result of the study suggested that 0.5% sodium hydroxide and 1.0% potassium hydroxide catalyst concentration were optimum for biodiesel production from P. pinnata oil under microwave heating. There was a significant reduction in reaction time for microwave induced transesterification as compared to conventional heating.     

Conversion of waste produced by the deodorization of palm oil as feedstock for the production of biodiesel using a catalyst prepared from waste material

The distillate produced by deodorization of palm oil (DDPO) is a waste that corresponds to 4% of the product formed in this process. DDPO is 83% free of fatty acids (FFA), making it a good material for biodiesel production. In this paper, a catalyst prepared from a waste material, Amazon flint kaolin, was used for the esterification of DDPO with methanol. Leached metakaolin treated at 950 °C and activated with 4 M sulfuric acid (labeled as MF9S4) offered maximum esterification activity (92.8%) at 160 °C with a DDPO:methanol molar ratio of 1:60 and a 4-h reaction time. The influences of reaction parameters, such as the molar ratio of the reactants, alcohol chain length, temperature, time and the presence of glycerides and unsaponifiable matter, have also been investigated. Based on the catalytic results, esterification of DDPO using MF9S4 can be a cheaper alternative for production of sustainable fuels.     

Synthesis of fatty acid methyl ester from used vegetable cooking oil by solid reusable Mg 1-x Zn 1+x O2 catalyst

Fatty acid methyl ester was produced from used vegetable cooking oil using Mg_1−x Zn_1+xO₂ solid catalyst and the performance monitored in terms of ester content obtained. Used vegetable cooking oil was employed to reduce operation cost of biodiesel. The significant operating parameters which affect the overall yield of the process were studied. The highest ester content, 80%, was achieved with the catalyst during 4 h 15 min reaction at 188 °C with methanol to oil ratio of 9:1 and catalyst loading of 2.55 wt% oil. Also, transesterification of virgin oil gave higher yield with the heterogeneous catalyst and showed high selectivity towards ester production. The used vegetable cooking oil did not require any rigorous pretreatment. Catalyst stability was examined and there was no leaching of the active components, and its performance was as good at the fourth as at the first cycle.     

Production of biodiesel and lactic acid from rapeseed oil using sodium silicate as catalyst

Biodiesel and lactic acid from rapeseed oil was produced using sodium silicate as catalyst. The transesterification in the presence of the catalyst proceeded with a maximum yield of 99.6% under optimized conditions [3% (w/w) sodium silicate, methanol/oil molar ratio 9/1, reaction time 60 min, reaction temperature 60 °C, and stirring rate 250 rpm]. After six consecutive transesterification reactions, the catalyst was collected and used for catalysis of the conversion of glycerol to lactic acid. A maximum yield of 80.5% was achieved when the reaction was carried out at a temperature of 300 °C for 90 min. Thus, sodium silicate is an effective catalyst for transesterification and lactic acid production from the biodiesel by-product, glycerol.     

A packed bed membrane reactor for production of biodiesel using activated carbon supported catalyst

In this study, a novel continuous reactor has been developed to produce high quality methyl esters (biodiesel) from palm oil. A microporous TiO₂/Al₂O₃ membrane was packed with potassium hydroxide catalyst supported on palm shell activated carbon. The central composite design (CCD) of response surface methodology (RSM) was employed to investigate the effects of reaction temperature, catalyst amount and cross flow circulation velocity on the production of biodiesel in the packed bed membrane reactor. The highest conversion of palm oil to biodiesel in the reactor was obtained at 70 °C employing 157.04 g catalyst per unit volume of the reactor and 0.21 cm/s cross flow circulation velocity. The physical and chemical properties of the produced biodiesel were determined and compared with the standard specifications. High quality palm oil biodiesel was produced by combination of heterogeneous alkali transesterification and separation processes in the packed bed membrane reactor.     

Lipase-catalyzed transesterification of soybean oil for biodiesel production in <Emphasis Type="Italic">tert</Emphasis>-amyl alcohol

Lipase-catalyzed transesterification of soybean oil and methanol for biodiesel production in tert-amyl alcohol was investigated. The effects of different organic medium, molar ratio of substrate, reaction temperature, agitation speed, lipase dosage and water content on the total conversion were systematically analyzed. Under the optimal conditions identified (6 mL tert-amyl alcohol, three molar ratio of methanol to oil, 2% Novozym 435 lipase based on the soybean oil weight, temperature 40°C, 2% water content based on soybean oil weight, 150 rpm and 15 h), the highest biodiesel conversion yield of 97% was obtained. With tert-amyl alcohol as the reaction medium, the negative effects caused by excessive molar ratio of methanol to oil and the by-product glycerol could be reduced. Furthermore, there was no evident loss in the lipase activity even after being repeatedly used for more than 150 runs.     

Studies on Guizotia abyssinica L. oil: Biodiesel synthesis and process optimization

Guizotia abyssinica seeds, a common bird feedstock, have been explored for the potential of biodiesel synthesis. The oil was extracted from the seeds by solvent extraction and composition of G. abyssinica oil was examined. The reaction parameters for biodiesel synthesis have been optimized. Temperature, oil: methanol ratio, catalyst type and catalyst concentration were found to have significant role on ester conversion. According to this study, the maximum yield of ester (98.7%) can be obtained with optimized sodium methoxide catalyst dosage (0.6%) at an operational temperature of 65 °C. Methyl ester of G. abyssinica oil was also studied for its oxidation stability and low temperature properties. Further, the synthesized product was blended in diesel at 5–20% ratios and evaluated for physico-chemical properties.     

Biodiesel production from pomace oil by using lipase immobilized onto olive pomace

In the present work, microbial lipase from Thermomyces lanuginosus was immobilized by covalent binding onto olive pomace. Immobilized support material used to produce biodiesel with pomace oil and methanol. The properties of the support and immobilized derivative were evaluated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The maximum immobilization of T. lanuginosus was obtained as 18.67 mg/g support and the highest specific activity was 10.31 U/mg protein. The properties of immobilized lipase were studied. The effects of protein concentration, pH and buffer concentration on the immobilization and lipase activity were investigated. Biodiesel production using the immobilized lipase was realized by a three-step addition of methanol to avoid strong substrate inhibition. Under the optimized conditions, the maximum biodiesel yield was 93% at 25 °C in 24 h reaction. The immobilized enzyme retained its activity during the 10 repeated batch reactions.     

Enzymatic conversion of sunflower oil to biodiesel in a solvent-free system: Process optimization and the immobilized system stability

The feasibility of using the commercial immobilized lipase from Candida antarctica (Novozyme 435) to synthesize biodiesel from sunflower oil in a solvent-free system has been proved. Using methanol as an acyl acceptor and the response surface methodology as an optimization technique, the optimal conditions for the transesterification has been found to be: 45 ^oC, 3% of enzyme based on oil weight, 3:1 methanol to oil molar ratio and with no added water in the system. Under these conditions, >99% of oil conversion to fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) has been achieved after 50 h of reaction, but the activity of the immobilized lipase decreased markedly over the course of repeated runs. In order to improve the enzyme stability, several alternative acyl acceptors have been tested for biodiesel production under solvent-free conditions. The use of methyl acetate seems to be of great interest, resulting in high FAME yield (95.65%) and increasing the half-life of the immobilized lipase by about 20.1 times as compared to methanol. The reaction has also been verified in the industrially feasible reaction system including both a batch stirred tank reactor and a packed bed reactor. Although satisfactory performance in the batch stirred tank reactor has been achieved, the kinetics in a packed bed reactor system seems to have a slightly better profile (93.6 ± 3.75% FAME yield after 8–10 h), corresponding to the volumetric productivity of 48.5 g/(dm³ h). The packed bed reactor has operated for up to 72 h with almost no loss in productivity, implying that the proposed process and the immobilized system could provide a promising solution for the biodiesel synthesis at the industrial scale.     

Combined immobilized lipases for effective biodiesel production from spent coffee grounds

This work describes the enzymatic transesterification of the oil extracted from SCGs for synthesis of biodiesel as a promising alternative to diesel fuels based on petroleum. Biocatalysts from various sources were tested for biodiesel synthesis using coffee oil among which CaCO₃- immobilized Staphylococcus aureus and Bacillus stearothermophilus showed the highest conversion yields (61 ± 2.64% and 64.3 ± 1.53%, respectively) in 4 h. In further optimizing reaction parameters, methanol to oil molar ratio, biocatalyst quantity, water content, as well as incubation time and temperature markedly improved oil-to-biodiesel conversion up to 99.33 ± 0.57 % in a solvent free reaction after 12 h at 55 °C. A mixture of inexpensive CaCO₃-immobilized bacterial lipases at a 1:1 ratio was the best environment-friendly catalyst for biofuel synthesis as well as the ideal trade-off between conversion and cost. Obtained coffee biodiesel remained stable beyond 40 days at ambient storage conditions and its chemical characteristics were comparable to those of other known biodiesels according to the European requirements (EN14214). Collectively, SCGs, after oil extraction, could be an ideal substrate for the production of an environment-friendly biodiesel by using appropriate mixture of CaCO₃-immobilized lipases.     

Esterification of acidified oil with methanol by SPES/PES catalytic membrane

A sulfonated polyethersulfone (SPES)/polyethersulfone (PES) blend catalytic membrane was prepared and used as a heterogeneous catalyst in the esterification of the acidified oil (acid value 153 mg KOH/g) with methanol for producing biodiesel. The results showed that the free fatty acids conversion reached 97.6% using SPES/PES catalytic membrane under the optimal esterification conditions. Meanwhile, the SPES/PES membrane with 20.3% degree of sulfonation showed a good catalytic stability. A pseudo-homogeneous kinetic model was established. The results indicated that the reaction rate constant increased with increasing methanol/acidified oil molar ratio, the loading of catalytic membrane and reaction temperature. The reaction order was 2 and the activation energy decreased from 74.65 to 21.07 kJ/mol with increasing catalytic membrane loading from 0 to 0.135 meq/g(oil). It implies that the esterification is not diffusively controlled but kinetically controlled. The predicted results were in good agreement with the experimental data.     

Production of biodiesel from mixed waste vegetable oil using an aluminium hydrogen sulphate as a heterogeneous acid catalyst

Al(HSO₄)₃ heterogeneous acid catalyst was prepared by the sulfonation of anhydrous AlCl₃. This catalyst was employed to catalyze transesterification reaction to synthesis methyl ester when a mixed waste vegetable oil was used as feedstock. The physical and chemical properties of aluminum hydrogen sulphate catalyst were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) measurements, energy dispersive X-ray (EDAX) analysis and titration method. The maximum conversion of triglyceride was achieved as 81 wt.% with 50 min reaction time at 220 °C, 16:1 molar ratio of methanol to oil and 0.5 wt.% of catalyst. The high catalytic activity and stability of this catalyst was related to its high acid site density (-OH, Brönsted acid sites), hydrophobicity that prevented the hydration of -OH group, hydrophilic functional groups (-SO₃H) that gave improved accessibility of methanol to the triglyceride. The fuel properties of methyl ester were analyzed. The fuel properties were found to be observed within the limits of ASTM D6751.     

Transesterification of palm oil to methyl ester on activated carbon supported calcium oxide catalyst

In this study, methyl ester (ME) was produced by transesterification of palm oil (CPO) (cooking grade) using activated carbon supported calcium oxide as a solid base catalyst (CaO/AC). Response surface methodology (RSM) based on central composite design (CCD) was used to optimize the effect of reaction time, molar ratio of methanol to oil, reaction temperature and catalyst amount on the transesterification process. The optimum condition for CPO transesterification to methyl ester was obtained at 5.5 wt.% catalyst amount, 190 °C temperature, 15:1 methanol to oil molar ratio and 1 h 21 min reaction time. At the optimum condition, the ME content was 80.98%, which is well within the predicted value of the model. Catalyst regeneration studies indicate that the catalyst performance is sustained after two cycles.     

Use of experimental design to investigate biodiesel production by multiple-stage Ultra-Shear reactor

This work presents biodiesel production from soybean oil and bioethanol by multiple-stage Ultra-Shear reactor (USR). The experiments were carried out in the following conditions: reaction time from 6 to 12 min; catalyst concentration from 0.5% to 1.5% by weight of soybean oil; ethanol: soybean oil molar ratio from 6:1 to 10:1. The experimental design was used to investigate the influence of process variables on the conversion in biodiesel. The best ethyl ester conversion obtained was 99.26 wt.%, with ethanol:soybean oil molar ratio of 6:1, catalyst concentration of 1.35% and with 12 min of reaction time.     

Effect of several factors on soluble lipase-mediated biodiesel preparation in the biphasic aqueous-oil systems

Biodiesel is increasingly perceived as an important component of solutions to the important current issues of fossil fuel shortages and environmental pollution. Utilization of soluble lipase offers an alternative approach to lipase-catalyzed biodiesel production using immobilized enzyme or whole-cell catalysis. Soluble lipase NS81020, produced by submerged fermentation of genetically modified Aspergillus oryzae microorganism, was first proposed here as the catalyst of biodiesel preparation with oleic acid in the biphasic aqueous-oil systems. The effect factors such as enzyme concentration, water content, temperature, molar ratio of methanol to oil, stirring rate and pH of buffer solution on the esterification rate were investigated systematically. The reaction time could be shortened with the increasing of enzyme concentration as long as the maximum enzyme absorptive capacity on the interface in the biphasic aqueous-oil systems was not achieved. The optimal water content in the biphasic aqueous-oil systems was 10 wt% by oleic acid weight. The reaction rate was enhanced with the increasing molar ratio of methanol to oil, the increasing stirring rate or the decreasing temperature. Although soluble lipase NS81020 had lower activity at pH 10.55, hydroxyl ion conduced to restrain hydrolysis of methyl ester and facilitated the reaction toward the methyl ester formation.     

Optimization of direct conversion of wet algae to biodiesel under supercritical methanol conditions

This study demonstrated a one-step process for direct liquefaction and conversion of wet algal biomass containing about 90% of water to biodiesel under supercritical methanol conditions. This one-step process enables simultaneous extraction and transesterification of wet algal biomass. The process conditions are milder than those required for pyrolysis and prevent the formation of by-products. In the proposed process, fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) can be produced from polar phospholipids, free fatty acids, and triglycerides. A response surface methodology (RSM) was used to analyze the influence of the three process variables, namely, the wet algae to methanol (wt./vol.) ratio, the reaction temperature, and the reaction time, on the FAMEs conversion. Algal biodiesel samples were analyzed by ATR-FTIR and GC-MS. Based on the experimental analysis and RSM study, optimal conditions for this process are reported as: wet algae to methanol (wt./vol.) ratio of around 1:9, reaction temperature and time of about 255 °C, and 25 min respectively. This single-step process can potentially be an energy efficient and economical route for algal biodiesel production.     

Penicillium expansum lipase-catalyzed production of biodiesel in ionic liquids

Penicillium expansum lipase (PEL) was used to catalyze biodiesel production from corn oil in [BMIm][PF₆]¹ (an ionic liquid, IL) and tert-butanol. Both systems were optimized in terms of MeOH/oil molar ratio, reaction temperature, enzyme loading, solvent volume, and water content. The high conversion obtained in the IL (86%) as compared to that in tert-butanol (52%) demonstrates that the IL is a superior solvent for PEL-catalyzed biodiesel production. Poor yields were obtained in a series of hydrophilic ILs. Addition of salt hydrates affected biodiesel production predominantly through the specific ion (Hofmeister) effect. The impact of methanol on both activity and stability of PEL in the IL and in hexane was investigated, in comparison to the results obtained by two commonly used lipases, Novozym 435 and Lipozyme TLIM. The results substantiate that while different lipases show different resistance to methanol in different reaction systems, PEL is tolerant to methanol in both systems.     

A novel alkaline lipase from Ralstonia with potential application in biodiesel production

With the aim of isolating a biocatalyst able to catalyze biodiesel production from microbial source, Ralstonia sp. CS274 was isolated and a lipase from the strain (RL74) was purified. Molecular weight of RL74 was estimated to be 28,000 Da by SDS-PAGE. The activity was highest at 50-55 °C and pH 8.0-9.5 and was stable at pH 7.0-12.0 and up to 45 °C. It was resistant to oxidizing and reducing agents and the activity was enhanced by detergents. RL74 was 1,3 specific and K_m and V_max for p-nitrophenyl palmitate were 2.73 ± 0.6 mM and 101.4 ± 1.9 mM/min mg, respectively. N-terminal amino acid sequence showed partial homology with that of Penicillium lipases. RL74 produced biodiesel more efficiently in palm oil than in soybean oil; and the production was highest at pH 8.0, at 5% methanol and at 20% water content.     

Preparation of cross-linked lipase-coated micro-crystals for biodiesel production from waste cooking oil

A dual modification procedure composed of cross-linking and protein coating with K₂SO₄ was employed to modify Geotrichum sp. lipase for catalyzing biodiesel production from waste cooking oil. Compared to single modification of protein coating with K₂SO₄, the dual modification of cross-linking and lipase coating improved catalytic properties in terms of thermostable stability, organic solvent tolerance, pH stability and operational stability in biodiesel production process, although biodiesel yield and initial reaction rate for CLPCMCs were not improved. After five successive batch reactions, CLPCMCs could still maintain 80% of relative biodiesel yield. CLPCMCs retained 64% of relative biodiesel yield after incubation in a pH range of 4-6 for 4 h, and 85% of relative biodiesel yield after incubation in a range of 45-50 °C for 4 h. CLPCMCs still maintained 83% of relative biodiesel yield after both treated in polar organic solvent and non-polar organic solvent for 4 h.