UTILIZATION OF WASTE COOKING OIL INTO BIODIESEL OVER HETEROGENEOUS SOLID ACID CATALYST

Abstract

The purpose of this investigation is to manufacture biodiesel from second-generation feedstock as waste cooking oil (WCO) by transesterification technique over a heterogeneous mesoporous solid acid catalyst. The AlPO4 and AlSiO4 catalysts were produced using a simple approach and calcined at 450°C before being characterized using SEM and HRTEM. The images of SEM and HR-TEM exhibited crystalline and porous morphology. Waste cooking oil could be a feasible alternative to pure vegetable oil for biodiesel synthesis due to its low cost and absence of disposal difficulties. To enhance biodiesel yield, process factors such as temperature, ethanol: oil ratio, and catalyst dosage were changed to achieve optimization. The high conversion of WCO into biodiesel was obtained at room temperature with 1:3 ethanol: oil ratio, and 0.5 g catalyst dosage. The biodiesel conversion and selectivity of AlPO4 and AlSiO4 were tested by LC-MS analysis. The resultant products are characterized by FTIR and Mass spectrometry. This confirms and verifies the production of biodiesel. This study found that waste cooking oil will be utilized as a possible raw material for biofuel production after examining the experimentally produced biodiesel.