Abstract
The statistical experimental design (DoE) and optimization (Response Surface Methodology combined with Box–Behnken design) of sunflower oil transesterification catalyzed by waste chicken eggshell-based catalyst were conducted in a custom-made microreactor at 60 °C. The catalyst was synthesized by the hydration–dehydration method and subsequent calcination at 600 °C. Comprehensive characterization of the obtained catalyst was conducted using: X-ray powder diffractometry (XRD), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), N2 physisorption, and Hg-porosimetry. Structural, morphological, and textural results showed that the obtained catalyst exhibited high porosity and regular dispersity of plate-like CaO as an active species. The obtained optimal residence time, catalyst concentration, and methanol/oil volume ratio for the continuous reaction in microreactor were 10 min, 0.1 g g−1, and 3:1, respectively. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) showed that the obtained reduced quadratic model was adequate for experimental results fitting. The reaction in the microreactor was significantly intensified compared to a conventional batch reactor, as seen through the fatty acid methyl esters (FAMEs) content after 10 min, which was 51.2% and 18.6%, respectively.
Highlights
The worldwide environmental problems caused by the use of fossil fuels and solid waste disposal lead to intensive research in the field of sustainable processes of chemical and fuel production [1,2]
During the synthesis process, calcined ES was converted into a hydrated form, portlandite (PDF#44–1481), in the hydration process
Statistical optimization and DoE were conducted for the transesterification reaction catalyzed by the waste chicken eggshell-based catalyst under mild reaction conditions in a custom-made microreactor
Summary
The worldwide environmental problems (global warming, climate change, biodiversity concern, and different types of pollution) caused by the use of fossil fuels and solid waste disposal lead to intensive research in the field of sustainable processes of chemical and fuel production [1,2]. Biodiesel is one of these alternative fuels It is a liquid, biodegradable and non-toxic fuel due to the extremely poor sulphur content. Today’s industrial biodiesel production is mainly based on chemically catalyzed transesterification with homogeneous basic or acidic catalysts using edible vegetable oils as feedstocks. Beside several issues, such as the “food versus fuel” feedstock dilemma and the use toxic and environmentally unfriendly catalysts causing soap generation, wastewater accumulation and equipment corrosion (acid catalyst), another problem is related to the low efficiency of the commonly used modern bioreactor systems [4]. Based on the zero waste concept, many studies are focused on the investigation of different waste-based
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