Experimental analysis of biodiesel synthesis from palm kernel oil: empirical model and surface response variables

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Experimental analysis of biodiesel synthesis from palm kernel oil: empirical model and surface response variables Manuel Alejandro Mayorga Betancourt1,2   · Camilo Andres López Santamaria1   · Mauricio López Gómez3   · Alberth Renne Gonzalez Caranton1  Received: 4 June 2020 / Accepted: 27 August 2020 © Akadémiai Kiadó, Budapest, Hungary 2020

Abstract This work studied the transesterification reaction of palm kernel oil to produce Biodiesel FAME, using as catalyst KOH incorporated as a potassium methoxide intermediate. The catalytic tests were performed modifying representative variables such as reaction temperature (°C), methanol/oil molar ratio, and catalyst content (%KOH). The experimental data were adjusted to a linear empirical model, finding that the best experimental condition was observed at 50 °C with a methanol/oil ratio of 5.5 and a% KOH of 0.8. Finally, the FAME was characterized by FTIR spectroscopy, gas chromatography, and ASTM quality control techniques for analysis of cold properties, transport properties, and combustion properties. The reaction rate was determined and a reaction mechanism was proposed based on the experimental results. Keywords  Biodiesel · Yield · Empirical model · Response surfaces · KOH

Introduction Fossil fuels are the main causes of the excessive 46% increase in the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide that reached values of 410  ppm between 1850 and 2018. In consequence, some options have been proposed to reduce the GHG * Alberth Renne Gonzalez Caranton [email protected] 1

Grupo de Investigación en Aprovechamiento Tecnológico de Materiales y Energía, Universidad ECCI, GIATME, Bogota, Colombia

2

Grupo de Investigación en Procesos Químicos y Bioquímicos, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogota, Colombia

3

Grupo de Investigación en Electrónica y Tecnologías Para la Defensa, TESDA. Escuela de Suboficiales de la Fuerza Aérea Colombiana, ESUFA Fuerza Aérea Colombiana, FAC, Bogotá, Colombia



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Reaction Kinetics, Mechanisms and Catalysis

emissions associated with the transport sector, with participation in the biofuels market, which has seen a significant increase, although it is still a minority. Different routes have been researched for the production of alternative fuels from biomass for different applications and sectors, whether from physical, chemical, thermochemical or biotechnological processes [1–9]. The fermentation of sugars to obtain fuel alcohol and the transesterification of vegetable oils to produce biodiesel have been the most successful processes in industrial and commercial scale-up. It is also worth noting the recent impulse of the hydroprocessing of fats and lipids for the generation of hydrocarbons that can completely replace those derived from petroleum. However, the main focus has been on the use of these biofuels in the land transport sector, more specifically in the automotive sector. Transesterification is a low-cost technology, commercially available and easy to assemble, but the characteristics of the biodies