Biodiesel production from Phoenix dactylifera as a new feedstock

Biodiesel is one of the renewable and clean burning fuels, which can be used in diesel engines. Biodiesel is usually generated from food-grade vegetable oils using transesterification process. Using the food-grade vegetable oils is not economical since they are more expensive than diesel fuel. Therefore, it is said that the main obstacle for commercialization of biodiesel is its high cost. The kind of feedstock, which is used is the most effective factor on the biodiesel characteristics and the price. So, at first finding a proper feedstock has an important role in different places. Therefore in this research the possibility of using date seed as a cheap feedstock for biodiesel production was investigated, because it is produced largely in the hot arid regions of southwestern Asia and northern Africa. After extracting oil and producing biodiesel from Phoenix dactylifera (date seed) oil, the properties of biodiesel were evaluated by fuel standard tests and the results were compared with EN14214 and ASTM D6751 standards and also compared with the properties of produced. According to the results, the important benefit of the biodiesel from the date seed oil is high cetane number (60.3), low iodine value (46), viscosity (3.84 mm2/s) and flash point (140 °C) and the only weak point is its high pouring point (−1 °C) which limits the use of date seed biodiesel in cold weather in comparison with other vegetable biodiesel fuels.

► Date seed as an agricultural by-product could be used as a suitable and cheap ingredient for producing biodiesel.
► The most important advantages of date seed biodiesel are its high cetane value, low viscosity and flash point.
► Only bad factor is its high pouring point which limits the use of date seed biodiesel in cold weather.
► Methyl ester of date seed oil can be successfully used as biodiesel in the internal combustion engine.