Title: Instant biodiesel production from waste cooking oil under industrial ultrasonic irradiation

Authors: Ehsan Khosravi; Ahmad Shariati; Mohammad Reza Khosravi Nikou

Addresses: Gas Engineering Department, Petroleum University of Technology, P.O. Box 63431, Ahwaz, Iran ' Gas Engineering Department, Petroleum University of Technology, P.O. Box 63431, Ahwaz, Iran ' Gas Engineering Department, Petroleum University of Technology, P.O. Box 63431, Ahwaz, Iran

Abstract: This study investigates production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil (WCO) under direct ultrasonic irradiation using KOH and NaOH as catalysts. Specifically, the effects of methanol to oil ratio, catalyst type, catalyst loading and reaction time on biodiesel conversion were studied. Methanol to oil ratio as low as 4:1 gives a high conversion of 99%. Premixing the WCO with methanol can dramatically reduce the reaction time to ten seconds. Homogenising the reactant mixture before reaction increased the conversion by 20% when NaOH pellets were used as catalyst with methanol to oil ratio of 6:1 and 1% catalyst loading. Catalyst loadings of 0.75% and 1.25% give the complete conversion for NaOH and KOH, respectively. [Received: February 23, 2014; Accepted: January 14, 2015]

Keywords: oil premixing; ultrasonic irradiation; biodiesel production; waste cooking oil; WCO; transesterification; homogeneous catalysts; homogeniser; potassium methoxide; sodium methoxide; biofuels; methanol premixing; reaction time; catalyst loading.

DOI: 10.1504/IJOGCT.2016.074772

International Journal of Oil, Gas and Coal Technology, 2016 Vol.11 No.3, pp.308 - 317

Received: 05 Mar 2014
Accepted: 14 Jan 2015
Published online: 17 Feb 2016 *

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