Introduction:

• Is alkyl monoester of free fatty acid

R-(CO)-OCH3
• Is synthesized by catalyzed transesterification of oil (base, acid, metal
alkoxide)

Biodiesel quality control ASTM:

 Complete reaction...............95% and above
 Removal of glycerin..............0.24% max
 Removal of catalyst.............. 5ppm max in term
of Na, K
 Removal of alcohol...............0.2% vol
 Absence of free fatty acids………0.1 %
 Low sulfur content…………………0.05% max
Introduction:
Acid catalysis
H2SO4 is used for;
esterification and
transesterification
esterification (1h, 60 °C) and
transesterification (2Day, 60
°C)
Usually used for high FFA
content oil (6-15%)
Base catalysis alkoxide
1% NaOH is used with More reaction time and
additional equivalent of FFA temperature required
present
Soap formation prevents Have to be water free
diesel separation from
glycerine and water
FFA have to be 1% or less

Neutralization post Acid esterification followed

transesterification (CaO) by transesterification is used
for oil consist of FFA (1-6%)
Acid esterification…..acid used is very high (5-20%) depending on initial FFA,

FFA don’t come down after certain value because of H2O formation

Needs to separate methanol

Introduction:
• Raw materials
Soybean oil is dominant raw
material for biodiesel production

Oil % FFA content % gum Esterification Biodiesel yield

Soya bean 0.7-4 0.3h , 25% 95%, NaOH, 6-
ethanol, H2SO4, 7h
50% of FFA

CPO 5-6% 2 7.1h , 25% 95%, NaOH, 8-

(Need to be ethanol, H2SO4, 9h
removed: P, Ca) 95% of FFA
Oil Pre-treatment: FFA removal
• Caustic Stripping. Caustic is used to “strip” FFA from oils. Caustic reacts with FFA to
create soaps, which result in significant yield loss and creates a disposal issues with
soaps that are produced
• Acid Esterification. Methanol and sulfuric acid are mixed with oils, and FFA is converted
into methyl esters. This process results in no yield loss and no soap production.
• converting FFA into useable oil, glycerolysis, ZnCl2, 200 °C
• Silica, clays, and resin…. have not been very effective

Oil type % Initial FFA % Final FFA % Loading of MA Remark

Crude Soya bean 0.7-4 Need to be tested
oil
Coconut oil 1.5 0.13 3 Meet the target

Refined palm oil 0.42 0.07 3 Meet the target

Crude palm oil 5.6 1.01 3

Crude palm oil 5.6 0.8 5 Meet the target

Market size/usage
Every unit energy used to produced biodiesel return 5.4 unit of energy

Bioethanol: energy balance is; Corn ethanol….. 1.3, Cellulose ethanol-2,

Sugarcane ethanol--8

Biodiesel advantages are;

Less CO2 emission (better combustion), non sulphur emission,
better lubrication, high flash point (safe for transportation)

Biodiesel usage: used in transportation truck and train as a blend

with petroleum diesel
• Most common are
B20: 20% biodiesel with 80% petroleum diesel
B10: 10% biodiesel with 90% petroleum diesel
B5: 5% biodiesel with 95% petroleum diesel
Market size/usage

Source: US department of energy: Alternative fuels data center

Market size/usage
World biodiesel consumption and production:

Year 2016 2020 Forecast

Production (billion lit) 33.2 37.9

Consumption (billion lit) 33.5 38.1

Consumption is more than the production:

Scope for new innovation

Source: S&P Global Platts

http://www.platts.com/latest-news/agriculture/london/world-
biodiesel-productionconsumption-to-rise-26485632
Carotenes rich Oil from palm fruit fibre
Oil from dried Palm Mesocarp Fiber
 Solvent extraction
 Yield 8 wt% of Fiber
 The extracted oil has 24 wt% FFA and
3000ppm carotenoids
The Refined Mesocarp oil
 Degummed
 FFA removal (Using Solvent and
Adsorbent)
 Bleached
 Deodorization (120 °C, 15 min)
 Yield 4 wt% of Fiber
 The refined oil has 0.5 wt% FFA and
2700ppm carotenoids

Mass spectra of the Refined Mesocarp oil

Peak at 536.4 m/z corresponds to β and α carotene
Biodiesel Synthesis
• The feed stock is the FFA, mono and diglycerides removed from
the mesocarp oil during refinement
• The method used is acid catalyzed esterification followed by
base catalyzed transesterification

IR spectra of synthesized
Biodiesel

The peak at 1435.9 cm-1 is

from –CO-O-CH3 stretching
and is the proof of
Biodiesel formation