Heterogeneous Catalyst for Transesterification of Biodiesel Synthesis

The awareness on biodiesel in developing countries in the recent times has been increased. Several activities have been picked up for its production especially with a view to boost the rural economy. In the present investigation biodiesel was prepared from jatropha curcas seed oil (non edible oil). Before exploiting any plant for industrial application, it is imperative to have complete information about its biology, chemistry, and all other applications so that the potential of plant could be utilized maximally. Biodiesel was prepared by transesterification process of jatropha oil with methanol in heterogeneous system, using heterogeneous catalyst. The heterogeneous catalysts are environment friendly and render the process simplified. Calcination process was followed by the dependence of the conversion of jatropha oil on the reaction variables such as the catalyst loading; the molar ratio of the methanol to oil, reaction temperature agitation speed and the reaction time was studied. The conversion was over 89% at a reaction temperature of 70oC and molar ratio 12:1. Finally, Jatropha oil methyl esters was characterized to test its properties as fuels in diesel engines, such as viscosity, flash point, cetane number. Results showed that biodiesel obtained under the optimum conditions is an excellent substitute for fossil fuels.