Abstract
The purpose of this work is to evaluate the performance of Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 ferrite doped with 0.1 and 0.4 mol of Cu as a catalyst for the transesterification of soybean oil to biodiesel, using methanol. The samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, nitrogen adsorption and scanning electron microscopy. The reaction was performed for 2 hours at a temperature of 160 °C, using 10 g of soybean oil, a molar ratio of oil: alcohol of 1:20, and 4% (w/w) of catalyst. The product of the reaction was characterized by gas chromatography, which confirmed conversion to methyl esters. The diffraction patterns showed the presence only of Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 ferrite phase with a crystallite size of 29 nm. The samples doped with 0.1 and 0.4 mol of Cu showed a surface area and particle size of 22.17 m²g- 1 and 50.47 nm; and 23.49 m²g- 1 and 47.64 nm, respectively. The morphology of both samples consisted of brittle block-shaped agglomerates with a wide particle size distribution. A comparative analysis of the two catalysts indicated that the catalyst doped with 0.4 mol of Cu showed the better performance, with a conversion rate of 50.25%, while the catalyst doped with 0.1 mol of Cu showed 42.71% conversion.
Highlights
Metal oxide spinel type ferrites have proved to be very important for catalysis, and the literature describes the favorable performance of ferrites obtained via combustion synthesis with potential application in biodiesel production[1,2]
Heterogeneous catalysts play a fundamental role in the chemical reaction of transesterification, since they accelerate the reaction that converts fatty acids from triacylglycerides into the corresponding methyl esters of fatty acids. In view of these advantages, this study aimed to evaluate the performance of Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 nanoferrites doped with 0.1 and 0.4 mol of Cu2+ as catalysts in the transesterification of soybean oil with methanol to produce biodiesel
Note the peaks of high intensity and high basal width of all the reflections, indicating the crystallinity of the samples and their characteristic nanostructure. Both samples showed a crystallite size of about 29 nm, confirming the efficiency of the combustion reaction of the materials. These results are consistent with the work of Batoo and Ansari[12], who studied ferrite nanoparticles with a basic composition of Ni0.7-xCu0.3ZnxFe2O4 synthesized by self-combustion and obtained a single phase and a crystallite size of 28 to 32 nm
Summary
Metal oxide spinel type ferrites have proved to be very important for catalysis, and the literature describes the favorable performance of ferrites obtained via combustion synthesis with potential application in biodiesel production[1,2]. Various chemical synthesis methods are known to obtain ferrites, aiming the development of new materials or the optimization of the existing materials characteristics. Among these are the hydrothermal synthesis[3], the conventional ceramic method[4] and thermal cracking[5]. The combustion reaction synthesis has received special attention because its easy procedure, do not require multiple processing steps, do not use sophisticated equipment, it’s quick, it’s possible a reproducibility of the product and its achievement in batches (semi-pilot scale lab)[6]. Many chemical processes are used in biodiesel production, including transesterification, esterification, cracking or pyrolysis. Research has increasingly focused on new catalytic systems that can
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