Physicochemical properties of stillingia oil: Feasibility for biodiesel production by enzyme transesterification

The physicochemical properties, fatty acids profile and triglyceride compositions of the stillingia oil were analyzed. The stillingia oil was found to contain 98.79% neutral lipids, 0.22% phospholipids and 0.99% glycolipids, which exhibited varying contents of fatty acids. The major triglyceride was double linoleic acid linolenic acid triglyceride, which accounted for approximately 79.49% of the total triglycerides. Preparation of biodiesel from stillingia oil was investigated by enzyme transesterification with methanol as the acyl acceptor. The results showed that lipase type (Novozym 435, Lipozyme TLIM and Lipozyme RMIM), reaction systems (in solvent-free and tert-butanol system) and operational parameters (lipase loading, reaction time, temperature, and molar ratio of alcohol to oil) influenced the biodiesel yield. Fuel properties of biodiesel from stillingia oil were evaluated and all were in acceptable range for use as biodiesel in diesel engines, and had remarkable flash point and satisfactory cold flow properties. It was concluded that stillingia oil was an alternative potential feedstock oil for biodiesel production.