Optimization Of Biodiesel Production Process Research Articles

Process Optimization of Biodiesel Production from Gmelina Arborea Seed Oil Using Brine as Catalyst

Process Optimization of Biodiesel Production from Gmelina Arborea Seed Oil Using Brine as Catalyst

Optimization of Biodiesel Production Process Using MoO3 Catalysts and Residual Oil: A Comprehensive Experimental 23 Study.

The study aimed to utilize MoO3 catalysts, produced on a pilot scale via combustion reaction, to produce biodiesel from residual oil. Optimization of the process was conducted using a 23 experimental design. Structural characterization of the catalysts was performed through X-ray diffraction, fluorescence, Raman spectroscopy, and particle size distribution analyses. At the same time, thermal properties were examined via thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis. Catalytic performance was assessed following process optimization. α-MoO3 exhibited a monophasic structure with orthorhombic phase, whereas α/h-MoO3 showed a biphasic structure. α-MoO3 had a larger crystallite size and higher crystallinity, with thermal stability observed up to certain temperatures. X-ray fluorescence confirmed molybdenum oxide predominance in the catalysts, with traces of iron oxide. Particle size distribution analyses revealed polymodal distributions attributed to structural differences. Both catalysts demonstrated activity under all conditions tested, with ester conversions ranging from 93% to 99%. The single-phase catalyst had a long life cycle and was reusable for six biodiesel production cycles. The experimental design proved to be predictive and significant, with the type of catalyst being the most influential variable. Optimal conditions included α-MoO3 catalyst, oil/alcohol ratio of 1/15, and a reaction time of 60 min, resulting in high biodiesel conversion rates and showcasing the viability of MoO3 catalysts in residual oil biodiesel production.

Response Surface Methodology Process Optimization of Biodiesel Production from Castor Seed Oil

The increasing demand for energy and the depletion of fossil fuel resources has led to the search for an alternative energy source. The search for such alternative fuel sources has oriented biodiesel synthesis as the ultimate alternative energy resource of the future. The purpose of this study was to produce castor oil and optimize biodiesel production using full factorial central composite design (CCD) through the response surface methodology (RSM) approach. The castor oil was extracted using a mechanical press, and free fatty acids were reduced with acid esterification and biodiesel produced through the transesterification process using homogeneous catalysts. The physicochemical properties of extracted castor oil and biodiesel including density, kinematic viscosity, saponification number, free fatty acid, acid number, cetane number, and iodine number were determined. The ideal conditions for producing biodiesel from castor oil are anticipated to be a reaction period of 105 min at a temperature of 50°C, a catalyst loading weight of 1.5%, and a methanol-to-oil ratio of 5 : 1. The biodiesel yield obtained was 95.0%, and the results of the measured parameters of biodiesel were compared with the international standards of the European norms (EN14214) and the American Society Test Material (ASTM) D6751. The weight composition of both fatty acid and methyl ester was determined by gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS). The study concluded that the results of this research are beneficial in optimizing the parameters for making biodiesel from extracted castor oil.

Process Optimization of Biodiesel Production Using Waste Snail Shell as a Highly Active Nanocatalyst

In this work, we reported the transesterification of soybean oil (SO) to biodiesel using a basic CaO nanocatalyst produced by sequential calcination, hydration, and dehydration of waste snail shells. Response-surface methodology (RSM) and a central composite design (CCD) were used to predict several optimization parameters. 1H-NMR confirmed that 98.5% of the SO was transformed into methyl ester biodiesel. Under the optimal reaction parameters of catalyst loading of 6 wt. %, methanol to oil molar ratio of 8 : 1, reaction duration of 3 h, and temperature of 70°C, an excellent biodiesel yield of 96.1% was obtained. The transesterification of SO to biodiesel displayed a significantly low activation energy (30.45 kJ mol-1), whereas, the turnover frequency of the transesterification reaction was found to be 0.0063 mol g-1 h-1. The catalyst showed excellent stability and was consecutively used for six cycles without a significant decline in catalytic activity. Based on life cycle cost analysis (LCCA), the estimated cost for producing 1 kg of biodiesel in this study comes out to be just $0.935, signifying its strong potential for widespread commercial use.

Process optimization for blended waste frying oil in biodiesel production using CaO derived from African periwinkle shell catalyst through response surface methodology

Biodiesel is one of the renewable energy alternatives for fossil fuel because of its biodegradability, no toxicity, and environmentally friendly nature. Investigations have been made on transesterifying blended waste frying oil (BWFO) into biodiesel using African periwinkle shells (APS) heterogeneous catalyst. The BWFO, a mixture of 60:40 groundnut oil and waste palm oil, usually causes serious environmental problems when indiscriminately disposed. After being calcined, the non-activated APS (RAPS) was further sulphonated to create an acid-activated APS (AAPSA) catalyst. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), the Brunauer-Emmett-Teller method (BET), and other techniques were used to characterize the produced RAPS and AAPSA. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) were used to evaluate the produced biodiesel. Besides, a series of physiochemical properties including acid value, density, kinetic viscosity, flash point, cloud point, pour point, and other fuel properties of produced BWFO, were evaluated using ASTM standard methods. The central composite design (CCD) of the response surface methodology (RSM) was utilized for modeling and process optimization of biodiesel production from BWFO.The characterization results revealed that CaO (62.07 %) is the main constituent of AAPSA. The RPSA's pore volume and BET surface area were 0.34 cm3/g and 68.93 m2/g, respectively. BET surface area (30.9%) and pore volume (48.2 %) increased for the AAPSA. The significant increase in surface area and pore volume of AAPSA indicates an enhanced number of acid sites and catalytic activity of the acid-modified catalyst towards higher produced biodiesel yield. The optimal conditions for the reaction temperature, reaction time, catalyst loading, and methanol to oil ratio (mtOH/oil) were 55 °C, 142.5 min, 2.5 wt%, and 14.25:1. This resulted in the maximum yield of biodiesel, which was 91.5 %. Moreover, the AAPSA catalyst performed excellently, and the resulting biodiesel fuel's properties are comparable with those of ASTM D6751 and EN 14214 standards. Hence, AAPSA is a potential solid acid bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst to produce biodiesel from BWFO. Therefore, this study's novelty comprises the synthesis of solid acid bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst from giant African land snail shells and the optimization of the process variables involved in the production of biodiesel from BWFO.

Process Optimization for Biodiesel Production and Its Effect on the Performance of Diesel Engines

AbstractThe operating conditions of transesterification reaction for maximum yield of biodiesel from waste cooking oil were optimized by using response surface methodology (RSM) in terms of stoichiometric methanol‐to‐oil ratio, reaction temperature, and reaction time. The RSM model was significant with R2 = 0.99. Gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy certified the formation of methyl ester of most triglycerides. The produced biodiesel was tested in a diesel engine to be compared with biodiesel blends and pure petrodiesel, indicating promising results with regard to performance and emissions.

Optimization of biodiesel production process for mixed nonedible oil (processed dairy waste, mahua oil, and castor oil) using response surface methodology

The fossil fuel-based energy supply represents dominant role in the developing countries like India. The extensive utilization of fuel in the industrial sector and transportation sector brings down the available fuel resources and also ensues environmental and health issues. Biodiesel is one of the major replacements for fossil fuel since it is renewable and green fuel. The current study perceives from futuristic notion and that has resulted in a mixture of nonedible oil feedstock in the use of biodiesel production by mixing castor oil (CO), mahua oil (MO), processed dairy waste (PWD) in equal volume. Five-level three-parameter design of experiment is proposed to optimize transesterification reaction parameters to achieve higher biodiesel yield (fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) conversion). The response surface methodology (RSM) based on central composite design (CCD) was used to predict optimal transesterification reaction parameters such as percentage of catalyst utilization, reaction temperature, and methanol-to-oil molar ratio. Based on the RSM-CCD result, the optimum transesterification reaction parameters of the proposed mixed oil were found to be 2.82 wt% of catalyst utilization, 63.93°C reaction temperature, and 7.86:1 methanol-to-oil molar ratio with maximum yield of 95.9135% and experimentally 94.0%. The fuel properties were measured as per ASTM D6751 standards and results disclosed that the prepared nonedible mixed oil is an effective feedstock for biodiesel production. This research work aimed to dwindle the dependency on crude oil and thereby ameliorating the energy security in a constructive and eco-friendly method. Hence, this work also reports the biodiesel production cost from the proposed novel mixed nonedible oil.

RSM process optimization of biodiesel production from rapeseed oil and waste corn oil in the presence of green and novel catalyst

In the scenario of global warming and pollution, the green synthesis and use of biodiesel has acquired utmost priority. Due to several limitations of homogeneous catalysis, organobase immobilized heterogeneous catalyzed production of biodiesel has come out as a favored route. The present report demonstrates the design and synthesis of Peganum harmala spice seed extract modified GO-CuFe2O4 (SSE@GO-CuFe2O4) nanocomposite as an organobase functionalized high surface area magnetic nanocatalyst. Pistachio leaves were used in the green reduction of precursor salts to synthesize CuFe2O4 NPs. The as-synthesized nanomaterial was characterized physicochemically by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-Ray analysis (EDX), elemental mapping, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and vibrating sample magnetometer techniques (VSM). Subsequently, the catalyst was explored in the efficient synthesis of biodiesels by trans-esterification of two substrates, the rapeseed oil and waste corn oil. The optimum conditions for biodiesel production were determined through response surface methodology based on Box–Behnken design including the study of calibration curves and 3D contour plots. Easy separation and workup, use of green medium, excellent reused for several times and short reaction time are outstanding benefits of this study.

Optimization of Biodiesel Production Process from Household Waste Oil, Rapeseed, and Microalgae Oils as a Suitable Alternative for Jet Fuel

Optimization of Biodiesel Production Process from Household Waste Oil, Rapeseed, and Microalgae Oils as a Suitable Alternative for Jet Fuel

Process Optimization of Biodiesel Production Using the Laplacian Harris Hawk Optimization (LHHO) Algorithm

Continuous power consumption from standard fuel resources is responsible for producing large-scale environmental greenhouse gases. Production of biodiesel fuels from the vegetable oils can be considered an alternative source. Effect of greenhouse gases can also be diminished. The production of biodiesel is done by a chemical process namely transesterification and usually maximized by using the Response Surface Methodology (RSM) tool. This paper presents a new approach to optimize the production of biodiesel by introducing a new variant of recently published metaheuristic Harris Hawk Optimization (HHO). The developed variant is based on the replacement of random numbers of normal distribution at the initialization phase by the random numbers generated from the Laplacian distribution. The proposed variant is named as the Laplacian Harris Hawk Optimization (LHHO) algorithm. The contribution of this paper is in twofold: firstly the performance of the proposed algorithm is verified over a well-known set of benchmark functions, and then, we applied the LHHO to maximize biodiesel production. Comparison of LHHO is carried out with five other recent metaheuristic algorithms. An optimization routine is formulated in the form of a single-objective function with a temperature, methanol to oil ratio, and catalyst concentration as the optimization variables. These parameters are optimized to maximize the production of biodiesel. The results obtained using the proposed LHHO show significant improvement as compared to other algorithms.

Optimization of biodiesel yield and diesel engine performance from waste cooking oil by response surface method (RSM)

The aim of this study is to investigate optimization of biodiesel production process and the effects of biodiesel–diesel fuel blends on engine performance and exhaust emission parameters by using response surface methodology. Transesterification method was used in biodiesel production. The importance of four process parameters namely molar ratio, catalyst amount, reaction temperature, and reaction time on biodiesel conversion rate is determined. For the optimization process Box–Behnken design (BBD) based on RSM was used. An optimum biodiesel yield was 93.124% was obtained at 6.05:1 methanol to oil molar ratio, 0.77 wt% catalyst amount, 62.75 °C reaction temperature and 72.63 min reaction time. Engine operating parameters such as blend ratio of biodiesel fuel and engine speed have been optimized to obtain optimum performance and exhaust emission values. The experiments were designed using central composite design method based on RSM. The results revealed that when the engine was operated with 1943.51 rpm engine speed and fueled with a 9.17% biodiesel ratio as the optimal conditions, responses were determined as 44.8097 kW, 245.946 Nm 5.17481%, 262.235 ppm, and 810.227 ppm for power, torque, smoke opacity, CO, and NOx, respectively.

Process Optimization for Biodiesel Production from Highly Acidic Hibiscus Cannabinus (Deccan Hemp) Oil

In this study, Hibiscus Cannabinus (deccan hemp) oil was used to convert its methyl ester. Methyl ester synthesis process involves of two-steps: esterification of sulfuric acid (Step-1) and alkaline transesterification (Step-2). Deccan hemp oil was found to have an initial acid value of 12.48 mg KOH/g. The acid value of deccan hemp oil was decreased to below 2 mg KOH/g in Step-1 taking consideration to get higher ester yield after alkaline transesterification process. The alkaline transesterification process parameters such as methyl alcohol to deccan hemp oil molar ratio, sulfuric acid catalyst amount, reaction temperature and reaction time were optimised and analysed in detail. This process gives ester yield of about 95.48%. The important properties of the synthesised methyl ester were determined and compared with IS 51607 and ASTM D6751 biodiesel standards.

A Hybrid Genetic Programming–Gray Wolf Optimizer Approach for Process Optimization of Biodiesel Production

Biodiesel is one the most sought after alternate fuels in the current global need for sustainable and renewable energy sources due to their lower emissions and no major modification requirement to existing engines. However, the performance and productivity of the biodiesel production process are significantly dependent on the process parameters. In this regard, a novel hybrid genetic programming-gray wolf optimizer approach for the process optimization of biodiesel production is proposed in this paper. For an illustration of the proposed approach, kinematic viscosity is expressed as a symbolic regression metamodel to account for the influence of catalyst concentration, reaction temperature, alcohol-to-oil molar ratio, and reaction time. Then, the genetic programming-based symbolic regression metamodel is used as an objective function by the gray wolf optimizer to optimize the process parameters. The obtained results show that the proposed approach is simple, accurate, and robust.

Modelling and process optimization for biodiesel production from Nannochloropsis salina using artificial neural network

In the present investigation, calcium oxide solid nanocatalyst derived from the egg shell and Nannochloropsis salina were used for the production of biodiesel. The morphological characteristics and functional groups of synthesized nanocatalyst was characterized by SEM and FTIR analysis. Process variables optimization for biodiesel production was studied using RSM and ANN. The R2 values for RSM and ANN was found to be 0.8751 and 0.957 which showed that the model was significantly fit with the experimental data. The maximum FAME conversion for the synthesized nanocatalyst CaO was found to be 86.1% under optimum process conditions (nanocatalyst amount: 3% (w/v); oil to methanol ratio 1:6 (v/v); reaction temperature: 60 °C; reaction time 55 min). Concentration of FAME present in biodiesel was identified by GC–MS analysis.

Process optimization of biodiesel production via esterification of oleic acid using sulfonated hierarchical mesoporous ZSM-5 as an efficient heterogeneous catalyst

The development of effective heterogeneous catalysts for the production of biodiesel from low-cost feedstocks containing large amounts of free fatty acids has lately become one of the foremost research issues in the energy research area. Herein, hierarchical mesoporous ZSM-5 zeolite containing sulfonic acid groups (SO3H-HM-ZSM-5-3) was prepared via the hard template approach, using soluble starch as a cheap and sustainable mesoporegen, and the subsequent sulfonation using chlorosulfonic acid as a sulfonating agent. The catalytic activity of the synthesized catalyst was evaluated in the esterification of oleic acid with methanol, and the principal process variables were optimized, adopting the response surface methodology. Results revealed that the catalyst amount and reaction temperature seemed to be the most influential variables governing the esterification process. A maximum oleic acid conversion of 100% was achieved under the optimum operating conditions of 18:1 methanol-to-oleic acid molar ratio and 5.2 wt% catalyst amount (based on the mass of oleic acid) at 88 °C, for 10 h. The performance of the developed SO3H-HM-ZSM-5-3 catalyst was comparable to or even outperformed some other reported acidic catalysts. Importantly, the performance of SO3H-HM-ZSM-5-3 for biodiesel production from waste cooking oil doped with 15% of oleic acid was additionally explored, and methyl ester yield as high as 92.45% was achieved through the simultaneous esterification of free fatty acids and the transesterification of triglycerides. Accordingly, SO3H-HM-ZSM-5-3 appears promising as an industrial catalyst for the one-step biodiesel production from low-grade feedstocks containing high levels of FFAs.

Validation of Optimal Conditions of the Functional Properties of Rubber Seed Oil-Derived Biodiesel

As a result of cost, environmental impact and fear of sustainability of petroleum products, various alternatives for energy have been sourced out, of which biodiesel is seen as the closest. Rubber oil being a viable source for biodiesel production since it is not edible was used to produce biodiesel and the functional properties which are the cetane number, kinematic viscosity and yield were optimized. Response surface methodology is one of the tools used for the simulation and optimization of biodiesel production process. 30 experiments were carried out in the lab using experimental process design for the trans-esterification process via CCD. A parametric study of the process parameters involved in the trans-esterification reaction showed that the output responses which were yield, kinematic viscosity and cetane number had greater dependence on the methanol to oil ratio, reaction time and reaction temperature than on catalyst concentration. Optimal prediction of the output responses using numerical optimization techniques were obtained at a reaction time of 151 min, reaction temperature of 48 , methanol to oil ratio of 8.2:1 and catalyst concentration of 1.2%. Validation experiments carried out in the laboratory using the optimal parameters showed that the predicted and actual values gotten from the experiment were in close interaction. A comprehensive analysis was carried out on the rubber oil derived biodiesel produced in the laboratory for its physiochemical and fuel properties (acid value, iodine value, peroxide value, viscosity, saponification value,). Results revealed that the biodiesel obtained can be used to supplement Petro diesel by blending in suitable ratios.

Process optimization of biodiesel production from waste cooking oil by esterification of free fatty acids using La3+/ZnO-TiO2 photocatalyst

In this study, a highly active and reusable La3+/ZnO-TiO2 photocatalyst was prepared by sol–gel method. The production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil by a two-step method. In the first step, under the UV irradiation, La3+/ZnO-TiO2 photocatalytic esterification of ethanol with free fatty acids (FFA) in waste cooking oil (WCO) was studied. In the second step, NaOH catalyzed the transesterification of triglycerides with ethanol. La3+/ZnO-TiO2 photocatalysts were characterized by TG, XRD, SEM-EDS, HRTEM, BET, UV–vis spectroscopy and Raman spectra. The optimum conditions were obtained by orthogonal design. At 35 °C, the ethanol/oil molar ratio is 12:1, the catalyst dosage is 4 wt%, the UV irradiation time is 3 h, the reaction time is 3 h, and the conversion of FFA reaches 96.14%. After 5 cycles of experiments, the conversion rate of FFA is more than 87%, which indicates that the catalyst has stable activity and simple recovery. The reaction mechanism of photocatalytic esterification was proposed and the kinetics of esterification was studied. Through the analysis of the characteristics of biodiesel, it is proved that the biodiesel by the method mentioned in this study conforms to GB 25199-2017 and EN 14214 standards. Therefore, La3+/ZnO-TiO2 as a new photocatalyst opens up a new way for biodiesel production.

Process optimization of biodiesel production from waste beef tallow using ethanol as co-solvent

This present study deals with production of biodiesel from waste beef tallow using co-solvent based transesterification. Waste tallow was dry rendered from discarded fleshing and processing wastes; whose maximum fat content was estimated to be 48.35 ± 0.87%, collectively. Following this, biodiesel was produced from rendered tallow using methanol as primary solvent; and ethanol as co-solvent in presence of potassium hydroxide as base catalyst. Ideal range for reaction parameters were decided based on reaction parameters optimized for methanol based and ethanol based transesterification separately. Accordingly, the optimal reaction conditions for methanol-ethanol based transesterification are as follows: (1) oil to alcohol molar ratio: 1:6; (2) methanol to ethanol molar ratio: 3/3; (3) catalyst concentration: 0.55% KOH; (4) reaction temperature: 70 °C; (5) reaction time: 35 min and produced a maximum yield of 97.2 ± 1.08%. Apart from production optimization, the resultant biodiesel/tallow methyl ethyl ester (TMEE) was evaluated for its thermal & physicochemical properties as per ASTM D6751 standards. Interestingly, the fuel properties of TMEE were found to be superior than compared to tallow methyl esters and was accounted by presence of ethyl esters in them.

Experimental and modelling study of the phase behavior of (methyl propanoate + carbon dioxide) at temperatures between (298.15 and 423.15) K and pressures up to 20 MPa

In this work, we report phase equilibrium measurements on the system (methyl propanoate + carbon dioxide) carried out with a high-pressure quasi-static-analytical apparatus. The measurements were made along six isotherms at temperatures from (298.15 to 423.15) K and at pressures up to the critical pressure at each temperature. Vapor-liquid equilibrium (VLE) data obtained for the mixture have been compared with the predictions of the Statistical Associating Fluid Theory coupled with the Mie potential and a group-contribution approach for the functional group interaction parameters (SAFT-γ Mie). The group interaction parameters in SAFT-γ Mie for the COO–CO2 interaction have been revised in this work by fitting to our experimental VLE data. After tuning, the SAFT model was found to be in good agreement with the measured data for both the liquid and vapor phases. Additionally, the data were compared with the predictions of the Peng-Robinson equation of state (PR-EoS) with one-fluid mixing rules and a temperature-independent binary parameter. This model fitted the VLE data well, except in the critical region. The present work is expected to contribute to optimization of biodiesel production processes.

Optimization of Biodiesel Production Process from Restaurant Waste Frying Oils in the Presence of Homogeneous Catalyst

Optimization of Biodiesel Production Process from Restaurant Waste Frying Oils in the Presence of Homogeneous Catalyst