Production of Biodiesel from Waste Vegetable Oil

Production of Biodiesel from Waste Vegetable Oil

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Washing was achieved using acetic acid and water that followed repeated agitation to remove grease and other soapy substances from the system. Washing of impure biodiesel continued until pH near neutrality 7. And specific gravity was determined using a hydrometer.

The amount of biodiesel produced after the transesterification processes were calculate using the equation 1 [ 10 ] Figure 1. Three different conditions Temperature, time and catalyst concentration were used to evaluate the optimal conditions for biodiesel yield. Temperature estimation was used to evaluate the optimal temperature condition required for waste vegetable oil conversion to biodiesel yield Table 1. Calculation of Specific gravity and viscosity evaluation were calculated by Oguntal method [ 10 ] as shown in equation This is essential in order to overcome the issues of environmental pollution and climate change that culminate contaminated fossil diesel and petroleum hydrocarbon fuels.

During purification, the total number of residues that occupy sample volume in one liter of waste sunflower oil used was 2. Thus the quantity of the residue so obtained was large enough to affect the quality of the biodiesel which may invariably cause cracking and engine damage. In this study, several conditions which included the molecular ratio of the ethanol, heating temperature, Concentration of sodium hydroxide, and time interval were considered as pre-requisite for alkaline catalyzed esterification process.

The molar ratio of The amount of biodiesel produced increased with the increase in temperature at a constant ethanol amount and waste sunflower oil volume Table 1. Alkaline transesterification in the molar ratio of Temperature effect on the rate of biodiesel yield was reported by Abba et al. In this study waste, vegetable oil conversion increased with the increase in temperature. At room temperature, the chemical kinetics of the oil requires a higher temperature to increase the fractionation of the waste oil molecules and that is why the increase in temperature greatly influenced the corresponding volume of biodiesel production.

Table 1 clearly shows that temperature can impact biodiesel production [ 11 ]. The increase in yield with the increase in temperature could be as the result of the acceleration of the saponification reaction of triglycerides [ 10 ]. At different concentrations of NaOH and varying temperature conditions, biodiesel yield increased with catalyst concentration until after 3. Yield started decreasing at a concentration above 3. Highest biodiesel yield was obtained with 3.

The yield of Catalyst concentration evaluation on the amount of biodiesel production with waste sunflower oil and time estimation was used to determine the required time for optimal production. The result obtained from this study shows that percentage yield is dependent on the temperature with respect to time.

This phenomenon is better explained in Figure 3 in this study. Percentage biodiesel production from waste sunflower oil at optimized conditions. In the furtherance of this study as is shown in Table 2 , the viscosity of waste sunflower oil The KM micromixer is characterized by its rapid mixing property resulting from small microchannel size. These small microchannels provide fast and efficient mass transport rate versus short diffusion distance and also offer high surface to volume ratios; consequently the reaction residence time parameter at the KM micromixer is positively affected [ 10 ].

Figure 4 shows the behavior of changing the volumetric flow rates of reactants introduced into the KM micromixer. This behavior may be explained by stating that for KM Mixer higher flow rates will result in increasing the pressure drop inside the reactor due to the small mixing zone diameter of the micromixer which affects the completion of the transesterification reaction [ 10 ]. Also very low flow rates were not durable for KM mixer causing it to lose its main privilege which is decreasing the reaction time. The main obstacle facing methanolysis of the waste vegetable oil is the presence of two immiscible phases that slows the reaction significantly.

In order to conduct the transesterification reaction in a single phase and facilitate the diffusion of the two immiscible reactant fluids, an organic cosolvent has been suggested [ 4 ]. THF was preferable compared to other cosolvents because its boiling point is near the boiling point of methanol that facilitates its separation from the excess methanol at the end of the reaction [ 4 ]. However, large amounts of THF are not favored to be used at the transesterification process regarding the fact that the excess cosolvent may cause reagents dilution which declines the rate of transesterification process [ 20 ].

Moreover, using large THF amounts at the transesterification process increases the process cost aspects. In this regard, the effect of presence of cosolvent to methanol volumetric ratio on biodiesel production yield was examined over the studied range from 0.

From Figure 5 noticeable improvement at the production yield using just small amount from THF to methanol ratio was indicated. Moreover, the biodiesel production yield was increased as the THF to methanol volumetric ratio increased. This behavior confirms the positive role of the cosolvent presence at the transesterification reaction. The optimum biodiesel production yield of As the utilized THF to methanol volumetric ratio increased above the optimum selected value, there is no noticeable enhancement at the biodiesel production yield.

In order to investigate the properties of the produced biodiesel at the predetermined optimum conditions using KM micromixer, it was compared with its parent waste vegetable oil using different characterization techniques. GC-MS was used for determination of biodiesel methyl ester groups present at the produced biodiesel using KM micromixer to determine the optimum conditions.

There were four main characteristic peaks of fatty acid methyl esters FAMEs appearing by the retention time and the fragmentation pattern data of GC-MS analysis. The identified FAMEs were verified by retention time data and mass fragmentation pattern from previous studies [ 21 ].

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Table 3 identifies the composition of the fatty acid methyl esters present at the optimum prepared biodiesel and their common names; the composition varies according to the process conditions but with nearly the same ratio. As previously discussed, the glycerol characteristic peaks were only present at the GC-MS analysis of the prepared biodiesel sample using excess methanol to oil molar ratio or at insufficient separation time conditions. Figure 6 b investigates GC-MS analysis of biodiesel sample produced at The appearance of glycerol peak at 4.

These results confirm the previous optimum selected conditions for biodiesel production using KM micromixer. Furthermore, GC-MS analysis of the produced biodiesel at optimum processing conditions confirms completeness of the transesterification process of triglycerides in the waste vegetable oil into biodiesel. TGA is one useful way for quantitative analysis for the produced biodiesel due to the large temperature difference between the weight loss temperatures of oil and biodiesel and this allows one to determine the conversion.

Accordingly, the percentage of biodiesel conversion at the prepared sample may be calculated using TGA [ 23 ]. These results confirm the successful biodiesel production in pure state at the optimum preparation conditions in contrast to biodiesel prepared at high reactant flow rates that contains remaining unreacted oil. FT-IR spectrometry identifies the main functional groups presence at both the optimum produced biodiesel sample and its parent waste vegetable oil [ 25 ].

The most characteristic absorption peaks of the waste vegetable oil were indicated in Figure 8 a. The main difference between the two FTIR spectrums is related to the transformation of ester groups at the waste oil sample into methyl esters at the produced biodiesel [ 20 ]. Table 4 shows the FT-IR main characteristic band positions for waste vegetable oil and the produced biodiesel.

This study investigated the use of KM micromixer in the production of biodiesel from waste vegetable oil. The study confirms that the proposed KM micromixer designed with fourteen microchannels was found effective for transesterification reaction completion. Thus, it can be employed in biodiesel production introducing many advantages over the batch reaction like time saving and higher yield and better conversion.

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interests regarding the publication of this paper. Indexed in Science Citation Index Expanded. Subscribe to Table of Contents Alerts. Table of Contents Alerts. Abstract The production of biodiesel from waste vegetable oils through its pretreatment followed by transesterification process in presence of methanol was investigated using a KM micromixer reactor.

Introduction The idea of using alternative fuels has been widely spreading for many years now as a replacement for fossil fuels. Materials and Method 2. Materials Waste vegetable oil was purchased from a local restaurant as a source of triglycerides for transesterification reaction. Experimental Setup The KM micromixer proposed for this investigation consists of 3 stainless steel plates, inlet, mixing, and outlet plates holding fourteen microchannels fabricated for fluid streams.

Effect of reactants flow rate on percentage biodiesel yield. It is thus distinguished from the straight vegetable oils SVO or waste vegetable oils WVO used as fuels in some modified diesel vehicles. Cetane number or CN is a measure of the combustion quality of diesel fuel via the compression ignition process. Cetane number is a significant expression of diesel fuel quality among a number of other measurements that determine overall diesel fuel quality.

Cetane number is actually a measure of a fuel's ignition delay; the time period between the start of injection and start of combustion ignition of the fuel. Diesel or diesel fuel is a specific fractional distillate of fuel oil mostly petroleum that is used as fuel in a diesel engine invented by German engineer Rudolf Diesel.

The term typically refers to fuel that has been processed from petroleum, but increasingly, alternatives such as biodiesel or biomass to liquid BTL or gas to liquid GTL diesel that are not derived from petroleum are being developed and adopted.

Journal of Chemistry

Distillation is a method of separating chemical substances based on differences in their volatilities. Distillation usually forms part of a larger chemical process, and is thus referred to as a unit operation. Esters are organic compounds in which an organic group symbolized by R' in this article replaces a hydrogen atom or more than one in a hydroxyl group. Flash point of a flammable liquid is the lowest temperature at which it can form an ignitable mixture in air. At this temperature the vapor may cease to burn when the source of ignition is removed. A slightly higher temperature, the fire point, is defined as the temperature at which the vapor continues to burn after being ignited.

Biodiesel production from waste vegetable oil (Sunflower) obtained from fried chicken and plantain

Glycerol, also well known as glycerin and glycerine, and less commonly as propane-1,2,3-triol, 1,2,3-propanetriol, 1,2,3-trihydroxypropane, glyceritol, and glycyl alcohol is a colorless, odorless, hygroscopic, and sweet-tasting viscous liquid. Glycerol is a sugar alcohol and has three hydrophilic alcoholic hydroxyl groups OH- that are responsible for its solubility in water.

Glycerol has a wide range of applications. Glycerol has a prochiral spatial arrangement of atoms.

Methanol, also known as methyl alcohol, carbinol, wood alcohol or wood spirits, is a chemical compound with chemical formula CH3OH. It is the simplest alcohol, and is a light, volatile, colorless, flammable, poisonous liquid with a distinctive odor that is somewhat milder and sweeter than ethanol ethyl alcohol. It is used as an antifreeze, solvent, fuel, and as a denaturant for ethyl alcohol.

Transesterification is the process of exchanging the alkoxy group of an ester compound by another alcohol. These reactions are often catalyzed by the addition of an acid or base. Vegetable fats and oils are substances derived from plants that are composed of triglycerides. Nominally, oils are liquid at room temperature, and fats are solid; a dense brittle fat is called a wax. Although many different parts of plants may yield oil, in actual commercial practice oil is extracted primarily from the seeds of oilseed plants.

Viscosity is a measure of the resistance of a fluid to deform under shear stress. It is commonly perceived as "thickness", or resistance to flow. Viscosity describes a fluid's internal resistance to flow and may be thought of as a measure of fluid friction. In relation to the problem statement whereas, the rising cost of diesel fuels in the world market, the negative result of greenhouse gasses emissions in the environment and the bad effects to our health - this report provide information with better understanding of what biodiesel is, the process of how it is produces as well as the equipments used; the public policy currently approved; the importance of using biodiesel as an alternative; the advantage and disadvantages of using biodiesel, the economic benefits.

An energy that is more practical to use in the same way that it is safer, renewable, available and of course - affordable. Biodiesel is one of the candidates of this needed energy because of its abundance and potential source in the country. Biodiesel is a clean-burning diesel replacement fuel that can be used in compression-ignition CI engines, and which is manufactured from the following renewable, non-petroleum-based sources:.

Virgin vegetable oils such as soy, mustard, canola, rapeseed and palm oils; Animal fats such as poultry offal, tallow, and fish oils; and Used cooking oils and trap grease from restaurants.

The level of care needed depends on the engine and vehicle manufacturer. Biodiesel is generally made when fats and oils are chemically reacted with an alcohol, typically methanol, and a catalyst, typically sodium or potassium hydroxide i. Rudolf Diesel, the inventor of the first compression-ignition CI engine, once said that "the use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today but such oils may become, in the course of time, as important as petroleum and the coal-tar products of the present time.

The discovery of transesterification of vegetable oil in by scientists E.

Production of Biodiesel from Waste Vegetable Oil via KM Micromixer

Patrick gave way to the invention of biodiesel fuel. Rudolf Diesel's prime model, a single 10 ft 3 m iron cylinder with a flywheel at its base, ran on its own power for the first time in Augsburg, Germany on August 10, In remembrance of this event, August 10 has been declared "International Biodiesel Day". This engine stood as an example of Diesel's vision because it was powered by peanut oil — a biofuel, though not biodiesel, since it was not transesterified. He believed that the utilization of biomass fuel was the real future of his engine.

In , more than a century later after the discovery of the first transesterification of vegetable oil, South Africa initiated the use of trans- esterified sunflower oil, and refined it to diesel fuel standards, By the process for producing fuel-quality, engine-tested biodiesel was completed and published internationally.

An Austrian company, Gaskoks, obtained the technology from the South African Agricultural Engineers; the company erected the first biodiesel pilot plant in November , and the first industrial-scale plant in April with a capacity of 30, tons of rapeseed per annum. Throughout the s, plants were opened in many European countries, including the Czech Republic, Germany and Sweden.

During the same period, nations in other parts of world also saw local production of biodiesel starting up: In September of Minnesota became the first U. In Asia, Chemrez Technologies Inc. The process used to convert these oils to Biodiesel is called transesterification. There are two basic routes to biodiesel production from oils and fats:. Most of the biodiesel produced today is done with the base catalyzed reaction for several reasons:. It is low temperature and pressure.

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It is a direct conversion to biodiesel with no intermediate compounds. No exotic materials of construction are needed. For this reason only this process will be described. A triglyceride has a glycerine molecule as its base with three long chain fatty acids attached. During the esterification process, the triglyceride is reacted with alcohol in the presence of a catalyst, usually a strong alkaline like sodium hydroxide.

The alcohol reacts with the fatty acids to form the mono-alkyl ester, or biodiesel and crude glycerol. In most production methanol or ethanol is the alcohol used methanol produces methyl esters, ethanol produces ethyl esters and is base catalyzed by either potassium or sodium hydroxide. Vegetable oils, animal fats, and recycled greases. These materials contain triglycerides, free fatty acids, and other contaminants depending on the degree of pretreatment they have received prior to delivery.

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