Abstract
The effect of thermal and chemical modification on the catalytic performance of illite-kaolinite clay (obtained from Bukittinggi, West Sumatra) in the transesterification of palm oil was investigated. Characterization with XRD, XRF and FTIR indicated a slight change in the composition of the crystal phase and the Si/Al molar ratio after such clay was calcined at 450 °C. XRF measurements also confirm that after treatment with two nickel salts, the natural clay absorbs more nickel sulfate than nitrate, while temperature played an important role in increasing the performance of the clay in loading nickel about 2 times bigger at a higher temperature. All clay-based materials prepared in this study were tested for their catalytic activity and selectivity in the transesterification of palm oil to produce Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) using the previously reported procedure. Chemical modification of clay samples with nickel sulfate and nickel nitrate was found to increase the catalytic performance of the clay in producing FAME from 38 to about 60 % while thermally treated at 450 °C yielded slightly higher to about 67 %. In terms of selectivity, all clay-based catalysts in this study gave almost the same amount of saturated and unsaturated FAME
Published Version
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