Non-edible Feedstock Research Articles

Biodiesel production from non-edible forage turnip oil by extruded catalyst

Oil from forage turnip (Raphanus sativus L) was investigated as a potential non-edible feedstock for ethanolic biodiesel production via transesterification using extrudate pellets of K2CO3/Sepiolite. The mechanical, structural and textural properties of the catalyst were measured using dynamometry, TGA, B.E.T and CO2-TPD. Catalytic performance during biodiesel synthesis in a volumetric glass reactor was evaluated after 2 and 4 h, for different catalyst mass (2, 3 and 5 wt%), oil/ethanol molar ratios (1:6, 1:9 and 1:12) and reaction temperatures (50 and 70 °C). A 99.9% biodiesel yield was obtained after 4 h at 70 °C, with a 1:12 oil/ethanol molar ratio and 2 wt% catalyst. Thus, the use of forage turnip oil for ethanolic biodiesel production using a heterogeneous catalyst (instead of the conventional homogeneous route) is viable.

Process Integration and Feedstock Optimisation of a Two-Step Biodiesel Production Process from Jatropha Curcas Using Aspen Plus

Abstract Jatropha curcas oil (JCO) has been recognized as a viable non-edible feedstock for biodiesel production with the focus of achieving lesser reliance on fossil fuels. The aim of this work is to integrate and simulate the production of biodiesel from Jatropha curcas oil by a two-step process; a hydrolysis step and a trans-esterification step. The challenge is then to optimise the feedstock ratios to obtain the minimal water and methanol consumption to give optimal biodiesel yield. For this purpose, steady-state simulation model of a two-step production process of biodiesel from Jatropha curcas oil was prepared using ASPEN Plus V8.8. The response surface methodology (RSM) based on a central composite design (CCD) was used to design optimisation experiments for the research work. From the ANOVA, methanol/oil ratio of the trans-esterification step was found to have a significant effect on the biodiesel yield compared to the water/oil ratio of the hydrolysis step. The linear model developed was shown to be a good predictor of feedstock ratios for biodiesel yield. The surface plot revealed that both feedstock ratios do not show a significant combinatorial effect on each other. Numerical optimisation gave the optimum values of the feedstock ratios as a methanol/oil ratio of 2.667 and a water/oil ratio of 1. The optimisation results also indicated a predicted optimum biodiesel yield of 10.0938 kg/hr.

Complete utilization of wet spent coffee grounds waste as a novel feedstock for antioxidant, biodiesel, and bio-char production

Due to the limitation of resource, non-edible feedstock has been gaining more attraction as the future feedstock for bio-based industries. Spent coffee grounds (SCGs) are the waste from coffee process which contained various high value products. The purpose of this study is to investigate the possibility of utilizing wet SCGs completely through three processes, antioxidant extraction, biodiesel production, and bio-char production. A semi-continuous process, with four extraction column reactors and peristaltic pumps, was used for extracting antioxidants from wet SCGs with methanol as solvent. Subsequently, potassium methoxide was fed into the reactors containing SCGs residue remaining after antioxidant extraction to produce biodiesel via in-situ transesterification. The defatted SCGs obtained after biodiesel production was further transformed to bio-char via slow pyrolysis. Antioxidant compounds with phenolic content of 10.3 mg gallic acid equivalents/g dried SCGs and antioxidant activity of 48.8 mg butylated hydroxyanisole equivalents/g dried SCGs could be extracted. Moreover, free fatty acid and moisture contents were reduced to levels suitable for in-situ transesterification. A biodiesel yield of 131.1 mg biodiesel/g dried SCGs was achieved, which was exceeded the maximum yield based on calculation. The bio-char produced from defatted SCGs had a heating value of 26.0 kJ/g and was smokeless, which satisfies the Thai community product standard (Per 238/2547). According to inventory analysis, the heat energy from bio-char product was far sufficient to support the whole processes.

Environmental impact of combustion of ethanolic biodiesel/diesel blends from several feedstocks on the gas emission levels in the atmosphere.

The aim of this work was to evaluate simultaneously the effect of produced ethanolic biodiesel from several feedstocks (soybean, crambe, macaw, sunflower, and waste cooking oil) and engine operational conditions (low and high engine speed) during combustion of biodiesel/diesel blends on the N2O, NOx, NO, CO2, and CO emission levels in the atmosphere. The biodiesel samples were prepared in one and/or two reaction steps, according to the acid index of each raw material, by esterification using H2SO4 and/or chemical transesterification using sodium ethoxide, both, through ethanolic route. The quality of the produced biodiesels was confirmed by ASTM/EN specifications. Then, biodiesel/diesel blends were prepared according to the following proportions: 10% (B10), 15% (B15), 25% (B25), and 50% (B50). In general way, all raw materials under combustion at low and high engine speed contributed to the formation of NOx and this effect was more drastically increased as the biodiesel concentration in the blends increases. N2O presented a similar behavior except for blends containing crambe and macaw biodiesel whose emissions were slightly reduced as a function of biodiesel content in these blends. Then, Principal component analysis (PCA) was applied to discriminate the effect of engine operating conditions, biodiesel kind, and biodiesel content in the blends during their combustion on the exhaust emissions. The attained results point to crambe and macaw as more environmentally sustainable feedstocks for biodiesel production because they generate less greenhouse gas emissions. These results are particularly attractive considering that, both, crambe and macaw are non-edible feedstocks with great potential for biodiesel production.

Production of biodiesel from waste shark liver oil for biofuel applications

Biodiesel is a renewable alternative to “petro-diesel”. There is an established conventional production technology based on refined vegetable oils. However, this is always more expensive than petroleum-based diesel, mainly due to the feedstock cost, and the biodiesel market is based on subsidies. Use of a cheap non-edible feedstock, such as waste shark liver oil (WSLO), would reduce the biodiesel production cost and make the process more economically viable.In this study, production of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) from WSLO using both acid (H2SO4) and base (NaOH) catalysts were investigated using a Design of Experiments approach (response surface methodology). Due to the high levels of FFA (free fatty acids) homogeneous alkali-catalysed transesterification of WSLO was less effective than the acid-catalysed process, resulting in WSLO to FAME conversion of 12% after 60 min, with maximum FAME conversion of about 40% after 15 min. Acid-catalysed WSLO transesterification achieved 99% FAME conversion at 10.3 M ratio of methanol to WSLO, 6.5 h reaction time, 60 °C temperature, and 5.9 wt % of H2SO4 catalyst.

Fe2O3 nanocatalyst aided transesterification for biodiesel production from lipid-intact wet microalgal biomass: A biorefinery approach

Biodiesel production from non-edible feedstock such as microalgae is gaining importance in present day, as they do not interfere with global food economy in addition to higher photosynthetic efficiency as compared to plants. Fresh water grown Neochloris oleoabundans UTEX 1185 is considered as a potential source for biodiesel production. The present study investigated different direct lipid extraction process from wet microalgal biomass through autoclaving, microwave, and ultrasonication pretreatments. Autoclave treatment showed a higher efficiency for lipid extraction as compared to other two pretreatments. Furthermore, transesterification process was carried out in presence of Fe2O3 catalyst and compared with conventional acid (HCl) and base (NaOH) catalysts. Fe2O3 nanoparticles used were synthesized from extract of Hibiscus rosa-sinensis by green procedure. The synthesized Fe2O3 catalyst played an important role in improving the biodiesel yield up to 81%, which is higher than that obtained with HCl (64%) and NaOH (48%). Thereafter transesterification process parameter like catalyst content, reaction temperature and reaction time were optimized and finally 86% biodiesel yield was obtained. Fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) profile analysis and fuel properties revealed the suitability of algal lipid for biodiesel production. 20.2% w/w of carbohydrate present in lipid extracted microalgal biomass was further converted into biohydrogen by dark fermentation and bioethanol under anaerobic condition using acidogenic mixed consortia and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (INVSC-1), respectively. The life cycle assessment study of the overall process was also done.

Biodiesel production from nonedible feedstock, radish seed oil by cosolvent method at room temperature: evaluation and analysis of biodiesel

ABSTRACTTransesterification of radish oil (RO) with different alcohols, namely, methanol, ethanol, and mixed methanol/ethanol at room temperature (32°C) in the existence of different cosolvents (n-hexane, petroleum ether [40–60°C], cyclohexane, diethyl ether, and acetone), was accomplished in this work. Through transesterification process, parameters affecting the alkyl esters yields, like cosolvent kind, cosolvent amount, KOH amount, alcohol:RO molar ratio, reaction duration, and stirring speed were studied. At the ideal conditions, yields of methylic, ethylic, and mixed methylic/ethylic biodiesels (BDs) were 97.55 ± 2.0, 97.33 ± 2.0, and 97.0 ± 1.0 wt.%, respectively. Monitoring cosolvent process of the RO was finished by 1H NMR spectroscopy which was exploited for quantifying the BD yield as well. High-quality and yield BDs from the RO were attained as a result of cosolvent alcoholysis reaction, and the specifications of the resulting BDs in addition to their blends with conventional diesel fuel obeyed those given by ASTM D6751 and ASTM D7467-17 standards, respectively. The study also revealed that kind of an alcohol involved in the transesterification reaction had an influence on the ideal conditions needed to yield maximum transformation.

Biodiesel synthesis and physiochemical analysis of Taraxacum officinale F.H.Wigg seed oil

Biodiesel is an environment-friendly, alternative and renewable energy resource, synthesized from inexpensive seed oils of non-edible feedstock through transesterification reaction with alcohol and a homogenous base catalyst. In the current study, Taraxacum officinale seed oil (30% by weight) is investigated for physiochemical characterization and biodiesel production. FTIR and GC analysis was carried out to investigate chemical properties and fatty acid profile of methyl ester of Taraxacum officinale seed oil. Optimized parameters of alcohol to oil (1:4), catalyst concentration at temperature of 65 °C resulted in highest yield of 92%, in 60 min time using response surface methodology. In addition, comparison of fuel properties of synthesized biodiesel with ASTM D6751 and EN 14214 showed well-matched values. Our study thus recommends cultivation, cleaner production and utilization of Taraxacum officinale as a non-edible potential feedstock for biofuel production and industrial purposes.

Enzyme-assisted extraction of insect fat for biodiesel production

Black soldier fly larvae (BSFL), high-fat-containing insects, are a promising non-edible feedstock for biodiesel production. Extracting fat from BSFL biomass for biodiesel production by using traditional methods requires a high amount of solvent, long extraction time, and thermal conditions. To address these limitations, this study proposed an enzyme-assisted extraction method for extracting fat from BSFL biomass for biodiesel production. Different proteases were used to pretreated BSFL biomass prior to the extraction by n-hexane. Among the tested enzymes, Protamex was the most effective for the pretreatment, resulting in the highest fat yield (2.2-fold increase in the fat yield, compared with the extraction without enzymatic treatment). The extraction of insect fat using Protamex-assisted pretreatment was then optimized using response surface methodology (RSM). A four-factor, three-level Box–Behnken design was employed to optimize the factors for the highest fat yield using 27 experimental runs. The optimized conditions were water-to-biomass weight ratio of 4.33:1, enzyme amount of 3.85%, enzymatic treatment temperature of 38.1 °C, and enzymatic treatment time of 4.27 h for a maximum fat yield of 36.09%. The extracted BSFL fat was then used as feedstock for producing biodiesel. Most properties of the synthesized biodiesel met American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) specification D6751 and European standard EN 14214. The enzyme-assisted extraction process was then proposed for use in large-scale operations to evaluate its economic feasibility, revealing promising industrial applications. This study suggests that the enzyme-assisted extraction is an efficient method for extracting insect fat, and the extracted fat has potential for use as oil for biodiesel production.

A benders-local branching algorithm for second-generation biodiesel supply chain network design under epistemic uncertainty

This paper proposes a possibilistic programming model in order to design a second-generation biodiesel supply chain network under epistemic uncertainty of input data. The developed model minimizes the total cost of the supply chain from supply centers to the biodiesel and glycerin consumer centers. Waste cooking oil and Jatropha plants, as non-edible feedstocks, are considered for biodiesel production. To cope with the epistemic uncertainty of the parameters, a credibility-based possibilistic programming approach is employed to convert the original possibilistic programming model into a crisp counterpart. An accelerated benders decomposition algorithm using efficient acceleration mechanisms is devised to deal with the computational complexity of solving the proposed model in an efficient manner. The performance of the proposed possibilistic programming model and the efficiency of the developed accelerated benders decomposition algorithm are validated by performing a computational analysis using a real case study in Iran.

Esterification optimization of underutilized Ceiba pentandra oil using response surface methodology

In recent years, the utilization of non-edible feedstock particularly high free fatty acid (FFA) containing Ceiba pentandra oil (CPO) has acquired an immense attention among researchers for biodiesel production. In this work, sulfuric acid-based esterification process was conducted on underutilized CPO and the process was optimized by the application of response surface methodology (RSM) using central composite design (CCD). A total of 20 experimental runs with six centre points were conducted to reduce the acid value of CPO and the effect of three independent process variables such as reaction time (30–90 min), H2SO4 catalyst concentration (0.5–1.5 vol%), and methanol to CPO volumetric ratio (1:2–1:4 vol/vol) was investigated with constant reaction temperature (60 °C) and stirrer speed (450 rpm). A quadratic model was suggested and the interaction between the selected process variables on the response acid value was evaluated using the generated 2D-contour and 3D-response surface plots that leads to the prediction of optimized esterification condition for maximum acid value reduction. Under the optimized process conditions, the acid value of underutilized CPO was reduced from 14 mg of KOH/g oil to 2.08 mg of KOH/g oil. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was performed to analyze the functional group modifications in raw and esterified oil.

Enhancement of Biodiesel Production from Palm Fatty Acid Distillate using Methyl T-Butyl Ether Co-Solvent: Process Optimization

Biodiesel production from a non-edible feedstock, palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD), in the presence of methyl t-butyl ether (MTBE) co-solvent was investigated. The reaction conditions were optimized in terms of their effect on free fatty acid (FFA) conversion by response surface methodology (RSM). The maximum FFA conversion of 98.93 wt.% was obtained at a molar ratio of methanol to FFA of 7:1, using 10 wt.% H 2 SO 4 during a reaction time of 70 min with 25 wt.% of MTBE co-solvent. The addition of MTBE co-solvent increased the reaction rate of esterification and acid-catalyzed transesterification. As a result of the increased reaction rates, the amount of unreacted FFA and glycerides in the final product were lower than were found in the product of a co-solvent free system.

Transesterification of non-edible seed oil for biodiesel production: characterization and analysis of biodiesel

ABSTRACTEvaluation of Radish (Raphanus sativus) seed oil (RSO) as a non-edible feedstock for biodiesel production was the main target of the present study. Extraction by solvent disclosed that radish seeds contains 33.50 wt.% of oil. Therefore, biodiesel production from it could be beneficial. Optimized base-catalyzed transesterification of RSO with methanol, ethanol and mixed methanol/ethanol was performed, to produce fatty acid methyl esters, fatty acid ethyl esters and mixed fatty acid methyl ethyl esters, respectively. The optimal yields of the methyl esters, ethyl esters and mixed methyl ethyl esters, were 95.55wt.%, 90.66 wt.% and 93.33 wt.%, respectively when the optimal reaction conditions were attained. Fuel properties of the parent oil were positively changed as consequence of transesterification reaction such that they fulfilled the standard limits as prescribed by ASTM D6751. Moreover, fuel properties of (biodiesels + petro diesel) blends conformed ASTM D7467-17 standards indicating their suitability as a fuel for diesel engines. Biodiesels form RSO were analyzed by thin layer chromatography and FTIR spectroscopy, and both techniques conformed its conversion into its corresponding alkyl esters.

Hydrotreatment of jatropha oil over noble metal catalysts

Jatropha oil is a promising nonedible feedstock for producing renewable diesel. In this work, the hydrotreatment processing of jatropha oil was investigated. Instead of using conventional alumina-supported Co–Mo, Ni–Mo, and Ni–W catalysts that need sulfidation pretreatment, noble metals such as Pd and Ru were chosen. Trials were performed in an isothermal trickle-bed reactor and the reaction conditions were as follows: temperature 603–663 K, weight hourly space velocity (WHSV) 1 to 4/h, pressure 1.5–3 MPa, and H2/oil ratio 200–800 (v/v). Yield of n-C15 to n-C18 hydrocarbons was maximized (70.3 and 43.8% for Pd/Al2O3 and Ru/Al2O3, respectively) at the following conditions: T = 663 K, WHSV = 2/h, P = 3 MPa, and H2/oil ratio = 600 (v/v). Since Ru favored cracking reactions to a larger extent than Pd, the yield of C15 to C18 hydrocarbons over Ru/Al2O3 was lowered. Using simple first-order plots for oil conversion, activation energies for the hydrotreating process over Pd/Al2O3 and Ru/Al2O3 were found and they were equal to 109 and 121 kJ/mol, correspondingly.

Esterification Kinetics of Phosphotungstic Acid Loaded KIT-5 Catalyzed Biodiesel Production

To produce biodiesel from used cooking oil and other nonedible feedstocks such as coffee oil and algae oil, a phosphotungstic acid loaded KIT-5 (Korea Institute of Technology-5) catalyzing methanol...

Euonymus maackii Rupr. Seed oil as a new potential non-edible feedstock for biodiesel

Abstract In this study, Euonymus maackii Seed oil (EMSO) was exploited and evaluated for the first time as a new non-edible oil feedstock for preparation of biodiesel. The EMSO yield was 41.06 ± 2.68 wt%. The fatty acid compositions of EMSO involved palmitoleic acid (2.01%), palmitic acid (14.5%), stearic acid (3.1%), oleic acid (49.8%), linoleic acid (29.3%), 11-Eicosenoic acid (0.1%) and arachidic acid (0.07%). Microwave-assisted transesterification with methanol provided a high conversion yield in short duration under low temperature. The 2.0 wt% of catalyst amount, 10:1 of methanol/oil molar ratio, 40 min of reaction time and 60 °C of temperature were found to be the optimum process conditions for the maximum biodiesel yield of 94.74 ± 2.09%. Using pseudo first-order kinetic model, the reaction rate constants were 2.145 × 102, 3.550 × 102 and 6.447 × 102 min−1 for 40, 50 and 60 °C, respectively. The thermodynamic property for biodiesel preparation was determined as activation energy = 47.67 kJ/mol. The fuel properties of the biodiesel product were evaluated and comparable to ASTM D-6751 and EN 14214 standards. Overall, this study revealed and confirmed the potential of Euonymus maackii seed oil as the appropriate alternative feedstock for biodiesel production.

Potential of aquatic oomycete as a novel feedstock for microbial oil grown on waste sugarcane bagasse

Biodiesel production from vegetable oils is not sustainable and economical due to the food crisis worldwide. The development of a cost-effective non-edible feedstock is essential. In this study, we proposed to use aquatic oomycetes for microbial oils, which are cellulolytic fungus-like filamentous eukaryotic microorganisms, commonly known as water molds. They differ from true fungi as cellulose is present in their cell wall and chitin is absent. They show parasitic as well as saprophytic nature and have great potential to utilize decaying animal and plant debris in freshwater habitats. To study the triacylglycerol (TAG) accumulation in the aquatic oomycetes, the isolated water mold Achlya diffusa was cultivated under semi-solid-state conditions on waste sugarcane bagasse, which was compared with the cultivation in Czapek (DOX) medium. A. diffusa grown on waste sugarcane bagasse showed large lipid droplets in its cellular compartment and synthesized 124.03 ± 1.93 mg/gds cell dry weight with 50.26 ± 1.76% w/w lipid content. The cell dry weight and lipid content of this water mold decreased to 89.54 ± 1.21 mg/gds and 38.82% w/w, respectively, when cultivated on standard medium Czapek-Dox agar (CDA). For the fatty acid profile of A. diffusa grown in sugarcane bagasse and CDA, in situ transesterification (IST) and indirect transesterification (IDT) approaches were evaluated. The lipid profile of this mold revealed the presence of C12:0, C14:0, C16:0, C18:0, C18:1, C18:2, C20:0, and C21:0 fatty acids, which is similar to vegetable oils. The biodiesel properties of the lipids obtained from A. diffusa satisfied the limits as determined by international standards ASTM-D6751 and EN-14214 demonstrating its suitability as a fuel for diesel engines.

Effects of nano-copper additive on performance, combustion and emission characteristics of Calophyllum inophyllum biodiesel in CI engine

Depletion of non-renewable energy sources are at elevated manner due to the rapid growth of industrialization and transportation sector in last few decades and leads to further energy demand. Biodiesels especially second-generation fuels from non-edible oil resources are alternate sources for replacement of diesel fuel in CI engines due to their considerable environmental benefits. In the present work, non-edible feedstock of Calophyllum inophyllum seed oil (tamanu oil) is used for biodiesel production. Transesterification method is used for preparation of biodiesel in the existence of methanol with NaOH as catalyst. The copper nanoparticles are synthesized by electrochemical method, and it is characterized by using X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). XRD and SEM results confirm the presence of copper nanoparticle and size of around 30 nm. This paper aims to investigate the effects of the copper additive nanoparticles with biodiesel blends on the engine performance, combustion and emission characteristics of single-cylinder direct-injection diesel engine and compared that with diesel fuel. The results showed that the addition of nano-additives enhances brake thermal efficiency and reduces specific fuel consumption compared to biodiesel blends but slightly lower than diesel. Combustion characteristics also are enhanced by improved oxidation reaction inside the combustion chamber which resulted in higher heat release rate. The emissions of HC, NOx and O2 are significantly reduced for nano-additive blends compared to diesel but increased CO2 emission was observed. It is noticed that higher CO2 emission and substantial reduction of unused O2 emissions from engine fueled with nano-additive are evident for enhanced oxidation and better combustion. Energy and exergy analysis of the diesel engine is carried out to estimate the effect of using nanoparticle additive with biodiesel.

Extraction and esterification of waste coffee grounds oil as non-edible feedstock for biodiesel production

The potential of waste coffee grounds (WCG) as a non-edible feedstock for biodiesel production was evaluated in term of extraction and esterification of waste coffee grounds oil (WCGO). The effect of liquid-solid extraction parameters such as the type and volume of solvent, the extraction time and temperature, and mixing speed were thoroughly investigated. The highest yield of oil extracted from WCGO was 15.47 wt% obtained at a hexane to WCG ratio of 9:1 (v/w) with a mixing speed of 200 rpm and an extraction duration of 5 min at room temperature. An esterification reaction was conducted as a pre-treatment step to reduce the concentration of free fatty acid (FFA), optimized by response surface methodology (RSM) combined with a central composite design (CCD). The results indicated that all the parameters including the methanol (MeOH) to FFA molar ratio, quantity of catalyst, reaction time and temperature were significant for %FFA removal. In the esterification step, the FFA conversion was 95% at the predicted optimization condition which corresponded to the experimental data. Therefore, the results of this study support the utilization of WCGO as a source of non-edible oil feedstock for biodiesel production.

Transesterification of Prunus armeniaca oil using calcium methoxide as a catalyst: Identification of methyl esters and proposed mechanistic pathways

ABSTRACTThe utilization of nonedible feedstocks for biodiesel production is getting top priority in the recent years, as they do not interfere with the global food economy. In the present study, calcium methoxide (Ca(OCH3)2) catalyst was synthesized for the production of biodiesel from Prunus armeniaca oil via transesterification reaction. Under optimized reaction conditions, the biodiesel yield of 89.93% was achieved and catalyst could be reused for four times with slight loss in activity. The fatty acid methyl esters in the produced biodiesel were detected by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS), and six fragments were identified based on mass-to-charge ratio (m/z) at different retention time. The fuel properties of the biodiesel obtained were in conformity with the ASTM standards.