Production of biodiesel from soybean and Jatropha Curcas oils with KSF and amberlyst 15 catalysts in the presence of co-solvents

Cleber Calgaroto,J Vladimir De Oliveira,Selma Calgaroto,Sibele Pergher,Marcio A Mazutti,Debora De Oliveira

doi:10.1186/2043-7129-1-17

Abstract

Abstract Experimental conditions for the production of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from Jatropha curcas and soybean oils using two acid heterogeneous catalysts (Amberlyst15 and KSF) was optimized, in the presence of different co-solvents (THF, acetone, petroleum ether and n-hexane) in a batch reactor at fixed conditions: oil to methanol molar ratio (1:9), catalyst concentration (4.8 wt%), co-solvent mass ratio (1:1), 160°C and 6 hours. Results showed that the use of co-solvents led to a reduction in the FAME conversion. Higher conversions were obtained for Jatropha curcas compared to soybean oil. The Amberlyst15 presented an enhancement in the catalytic activity after regeneration, providing high biodiesel conversions compared to the fresh resin. The catalyst also presented stability after 5 cycles of reuse. Activity lost was observed for KSF after 2 successive batch experiments, probably due to a deactivation of acid sites.

Highlights

The global interest in renewable combustibles has been intensified nowadays, mainly due to the environmental concerns related to the use of fossil fuels, reduction on petroleum reserves and adaptation to recent legislation that poses the need of reduction in vehicles emissions [1,2,3,4]
Screening of co-solvents Figure 1 presents the fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) yield obtained from the transesterification of soybean oil using KSF montmorillonite and Amberlyst 15 with and without co-solvents
A slight increment in biodiesel production was observed for Jatropha curcas oil, making possible the use of Amberlyst 15 and KSF as catalysts for oils of low quality and/or cost

Summary

Introduction

The global interest in renewable combustibles has been intensified nowadays, mainly due to the environmental concerns related to the use of fossil fuels, reduction on petroleum reserves and adaptation to recent legislation that poses the need of reduction in vehicles emissions [1,2,3,4]. The use of acid catalysts requires the neutralization and separation of the final reaction mixture, leading to environmental problems related to the use of high amounts of solvent and energy [9] This reaction system can result in soap production, especially when oils and fats with free fatty acids and moisture contents higher. To overcome these problems, several studies involving the use of heterogeneous catalysts have been presented in the literature, including zeolites [11,12], clays [13], mesoporous silica [14], heteropolyacids [15], resins [16] and inorganic oxides [17,18]. The use of co-solvent in a liquid phase can affect the activity of the catalyst by the modification of its surface characteristics [26], react with the reactants/products and to promote an enhancement in the viscosity of the reaction medium [27], especially when high temperatures are used [28,29,30]

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Methods

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Conclusion