Biodiesel as a safe alternative fuel for internal combustion engines points to the mixture of mono alkyl esters of fatty acids (average chain length: C14-C22) that derived from triglyceride sources like vegetable oils [1]. The vegetable oils are the renewable and sustainable energy sources that have calorific value close to traditional diesel [2]. Conversion of triglycerides into methyl or ethyl esters is performed by transesterification reaction. Transesterification is an equilibrium and reversible reaction that converts the oil into biodiesel and glycerol. Employing the catalyst is essential due to insolubility of two main reagents, oil and alcohol. Catalyst improves the solubility and accelerates the reaction rate [3]. Alkaline catalysts typically used are NaOH, KOH, NaOCH3, and KOCH3 [8]. For using the alkaline catalyst properly, oils must have low level of free fatty acid (FFA) (a range between 0.5-3%). Above this limit transesterification does not occur and products formed are soap and water, resulting in lower ester yield [4]. High cost of biodiesel is a major issue for its commercialization. The low-cost production can be achieved by using low cost feedstock like waste cooking oil. Waste cooking oils as biodiesel feedstocks are available around the world. Annual quantity of WCO depends on the consumption of fresh vegetable oil. EU countries are generated 0.7 to 1 million tons waste cooking oil per year [5]. UK and Canada produce 0.2 and 0.135 Mt of WCO annually, respectively. WCO generation of China and Japan is approximated about 4.5 and 0.6 Mt/year, respectively. Therefore, production of biodiesel from waste oils is not only a solution for the environmental problems of disposing it, but also improved the economics of the...
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...8 wt.%. It can be concluded that biodiesel yield strongly influences from all studied operating parameters. The predicted mathematical model was confirmed by both statistical and empirical assessments. Optimum condition for WCO transesterification was found as temperature of 65 °C, catalyst loading of 1.4 wt.% and MeOH/oil molar ratio of 7.5:1. From the ANOVA results, alkali catalyst concentration was the most important parameter that affects the biodiesel productivity. Additionally, TGA technique applied for conversion determining was compared by GC analysis in the viewpoint of transesterification monitoring. As a result, this method can be utilized instead of other characterization methods as qualitative analysis. The fuel characteristics of the biodiesel produced under optimum condition were consistent with international standards. Further work is suggested for
Both biodiesel and ethanol are derivatives of biomass that have been processed to create a liquid biofuel. Both types of biofuels have been touted as secure and environmentally safe alternatives to fossil fuels, however the research verifying these claims is extensive but often contradicting. In the following paper, the efficiency and quality of the two types of biofuel will be discussed. The effects of variables such as source materials and production techniques on efficiency and quality will be considered. Due to the limited scope of this paper however, only generalized net analyses of ethanol and biodiesel production will be considered. The production of ethanol requires one of two source materials, cellulose or sucrose, both of which are complex sugars. Currently, corn and sugar cane are the primary source materials for ethanol; however it can be produced from any plant cellulose. Ethanol is created using chemical and non chemical processes. These processes include liquefication, saccharification, fermentation, and distillation (Malca and Freire, 2006).
Biofuels, fuels that provide energy using relatively recent organic sources, have been around just as long as cars have. In fact, the first cars ran on peanut oil. Henry Ford, founder of a multimillion dollar American car company, planned to fuel his massively successful Model T’s with ethanol (National Geographic 2013.) However, this revolutionary idea was swept under the rug when the discovery of massive petroleum deposits kept gasoline and diesel cheap and affordable. As 2014 rolls around, consumers are starting see that the amount of petroleum in the Earth is shrinking and the same story goes for their wallets (Avro 2012.) Not only does burning gas and diesel empty out the wallet, it is also slowly covering the Earth with a warm carbon dioxide blanket that causes global warming. Transportation, which is the third largest emitter of greenhouse gasses (Biofuel Association of Australia 2013), is dependent on finite amounts of gas and diesel for its energy needs so it is very important we move towards a more renewable and sustainable fuel source. Biofuels, both ethanol and biodiesel, have the potential to fuel transportation efficiently and drastically reduce the carbon footprint, thus reducing the warm blanket of carbon dioxide on the Earth.
As stated earlier, the burning of fossil fuels to produce energy is one of the largest contributors to global warming. This non-environmentally friendly energy source has to be replaced in order to keep the world going. There is a type of energy source that seems easy to create and doesn’t require radical changes: Biofuels. Biofuels are a greener version of diesel and oil. They are any solid, liquid, or gas fuels produced from organic matter; the range of organic materials used for biofuel production includes plants such as corn, sugar cane, soy, and wheat; vegetable oils and animal fats; ...
In spite of, some people thinking that biodiesel have further disadvantages than advantages others respectably disagree. Supporters of biodiesel have faith in biodiesel being worthy substitutes of diesel fuel since it can help improve the environment. “According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced by at least by 57 percent and up to 86 percent with the use of biodiesel” (“What is Biodiesel?”).
With the ever‐rising prices of fossil fuels and the realization that our supply is severely limited, the need for an alternative energy source is rising steadily. Clearly the most efficient of the alternative options lies in bio fuels because they are naturally grown and thus have an unlimited supply, have virtually zero emissions, and can be us...
The main focus of the lab is the transesterification process, and biodiesel transportation fuel. The transesterification process is a process in organic chemistry where the alkoxy group of an ester compound is exchanged by another alcohol. The triglycerides react with an alcohol to from the esters and glycerol in a transesterification reaction. Oil is converted to biodiesel fuel using transesterification. Biodiesel fuels are liquid fuels that are produced from the oils. Biodiesel fuel
Biodiesel is considered an environmentally friendly alternative because it reduces the amount many toxic substances. Plants such as soybeans require carbon dioxide from the air to produce their stems, roots and leaves. During biodiesel production from soybean oil, carbon dioxide is produced and released in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide is considered a green house gas (GHG). However, this cycle of GHG emission does not neccersarily contribute to the atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. This is because the next soybean crop will reuse the carbon dioxide emitted for its growth. Another important environmental benefit is that biodiesel reduces particulate matter (PM), hydrocarbon (HC) and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions. These benefits occur because biodiesel contains 11% oxygen by weight. Oxygen allows the fuel to burn better, resulting in fewer emissions from unburned fuel. And lastly, biodiesel fuels do not contain any sulfur and does not have an unpleasant smell when it is emitted from vehicles.
In the world of global warming, all kinds of pollution and fuel shortages going on, renewable and clean/ green energy is increasingly the ideal solution of energy related problems we have to solve one way or another. Biofuel is one of the mainstream and highly supported solutions nowadays, an idea to make renewable fuel by living organisms such as fiber, corn, vegetable oil or sugar cane. Unlike nonrenewable fossil fuels over extracted by people causing various environmental problems like generating a considerable amount greenhouse gas, current technology already lets renewable fuel like biofuels to shrink a certain amount of greenhouse gas production, making it a more ‘clean’ source of energy.
Coconut oil was used to be an alternative to biodiesel in Thailand. The researchers found out that coconut oil has 12.8% of free fatty acid (FFA) that is possible to be used as a biodiesel through a series of process. First is that they reduced the FFA through acid-catalyzed esterification. In the second step they used the product produced in the first step and was transesterified with methanol to produce a biodiesel product. Moreover, they found out that the coconut oil biodiesel and the Thai petroleum was very much the same.
The continuous depletion of fossil fuel resources and their increased demand has changed the outlook from ancient resources of fuel to new resources especially biomasses of plant origin. Plant biomass is a promising raw material for fuel generation to sustain fuel requirements in the modern age. Basically biofuel these days can be divided into first generation and second generation depending upon the type of biomass used. Biofuel derived from sugars, oils, cereals, sugarcane and starch are categorised in first generation fuel while use of lignocellulosic biomass like soft and hardwood, agricultural wastes, straw and corn stover provides second generation fuels [1].
Base catalysts are highly sensitive to water content due to soap formation which makes separation difficult. Acid catalyst are used when the acid values of the non-edible oils are higher than the performance range of base catalysts. The acid value represents the number of acidic functional groups and is measured in terms of the quantity of potassium hydroxide required to neutralize the acidic characteristics of the sample. The protonation of the carbonyl group of the ester promotes the formation of a carbocation, which after nucleophilic attack of the alcohol produces a tetrahedral intermediate. This intermediate will eliminate glycerol to form a new ester and to reform the catalyst. Acid-catalyzed transesterification are carried out in the absence of water. The problems with the use of these catalysts are: the requirement for more alcohol; slower reaction rates; higher reaction temperatures and pressures; reactor corrosion and environmental issues. Both homogeneous and heterogonous acid catalysts can be used for transesterification. The acid catalysts more commonly used include, sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, phosphoric acid, and sulfonated organic acids. Due to the fact that the FFA content of neat edible oils is normally low but these oils are costly and conversion of too much edible oil into biodiesel may cause food crises, use
Recently, a new form of renewable fuel called renewable diesel was developed and is starting to grow in popularity. It is a direct substitute for other transportation fuels such as petroleum diesel and biodiesel with the latter being the primary product of SeQuential. Renewable diesel is produced using renewable materials such as cooking oil much like biodiesel, however the similarities end there. Renewable diesel is able to withstand freezing temperatures which biodiesel cannot and can also burn cleaner than biodiesel due to it being hydrogenated (Ernst, 2016). Not only that, renewable fuel can also be used in used directly without needing to be blended with petroleum diesel like biodiesel (Ernst, 2016). These advantages over biodiesel means SeQuential faces a very real threat of substitution as renewable diesel becomes more
Coal and crude oil are non-renewable resources. They take an extreme amount of time to form and due to that, they cannot be replaced once they have all been used up. However, when it comes to the biofuels, they are produced from plant material and are renewable. There are two types of biofuels: Biodiesel, which is made from rapeseed oil and other plant oils and is used in diesel-powered vehicles without needing any modifications to the engine, and Bioethanol, which is a liquid fuel that burns quite well and is made by fermenting sugars from sugar cane, wheat and other plants. In this essay, whether or not biofuels are becoming an increasingly important alternative to traditional forms of energy under environmental and economic benefits and
Even though production of biofuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, is rapidly increasing, their contribution to total fuel consumption will remain limited. Biofuels are sources of energy produced directly or indirectly from organic material including animal waste and plant material. In order to be considered a biofuel, at least 80% of the fuel must be made from renewable materials. There are 3 main types of biofuels: ethanol, biodiesel and biojet fuel. Biofuels are considered to be renewable since they can be replaced as quickly as they are used however biofuels biofuel production requires the use of fossil fuels in the form of fertilizers, agrochemicals,
Biogas can be used as vehicle fuel when it has been cleaned. The biogas cleaning consists of water (H2o) and hydrogen sulphide (H2S) that lead to separation of carbon dioxide from normal biogas (60 % Methane and 40% Carbon dioxide) content (Petersson & Wellinger, 2009). Biogas production from energy crops like maize, ley and sugar beet is the efficient resource compare with bioethanol fuel because it provides high energy yield (Börjesson, & Mattiasson, 2008).