PRODUCTION OF BIODIESEL FROM HURA CREPITANT SEEDS OIL THROUGH TRANSESTERRIFICATION USING HOMOGENEOUS CATALYST
Abstract
Biodiesel was produced from Hura crepitan seeds oil using a homogeneous base catalyst. The synthesis involved the transesterification of the triglycerides in the oil with methanol, in the presence of a catalyst (KOH) under the following reaction conditions - methanol-to-oil ratio 6:1, temperature 65 °C, reaction time 90 minutes, and 1.5g catalyst load. The oil was found to be an excellent feedstock for biodiesel production, resulting in a methyl ester yield of 95%. The KOH-catalysed transesterification process (percentage yield 95%, fashpoint 165oC, pourpoint 4.85oC, cloud point 9.2oC, density 872, specific gravity 0.872, cetane number 50.44, acid value 0.39 mg/koH/g, Kinematic viscocity 3.95mm2/s-1) proved effective, yielding high-quality biodiesel (95%) with physicochemical properties that met the ASTM-D6751 standards for biodiesel fuel.
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