Abstract
In this study, research was performed on the interesterification reaction of cotton oil with methyl acetate, using potassium methoxide as catalyst, in the presence of ultrasonic waves. In order to obtain a better understanding of the process variables behavior, a response surface methodology was used along with statistical methods. The experiments were performed with molar ratio varying from 1:8 to 1:24, catalyst percentage of 0.1 to 1.3% (weight), ultrasonic nozzle amplitude varying from 30% to 90% (180 to 540 W) and vibration pulse varying from 50% to 90%. Process variables were optimized with the optimal molar ratio of 1:14.87, catalyst concentration of 1.17%, ultrasonic probe amplitude of 67.64% and vibration pulse of 67.30%. The average conversion of triglycerides was found to be 98.12% at the optimal conditions. The experimental data were adjusted to the second-order irreversible reaction approximation model, under optimized conditions, with temperatures of 30, 40 and 50 oC. Lastly, in comparison to the conventional methodology, a significant increase of 14% of triglycerides conversion utilizing ultrasonic waves was observed
Highlights
The information on renewable and clean energy production has largely increased in the last decades
The results showed that the catalyst concentration was the most significant variable, followed by the molar ratio, catalyst concentration, molar ratio, amplitude and pulse
The present work intensified the study of biodiesel production by interesterification using ultrasonic waves, showing it to be a promising alternative to transesterification
Summary
The information on renewable and clean energy production has largely increased in the last decades. The transesterification reaction consists of a reaction of a triglyceride and an alcohol, producing biodiesel, which is an ester, and glycerol as a sub-product. As an alternative to transesterification, interesterification is a new biodiesel production process, free of glycerol, which has been developed over the last few years (Casas et al, 2011a; Galia et al, 2014; Maddikeri et al, 2013). This new process consists of a reaction of triglyceride with three molecules
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