Production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil in a continuous packed bed reactor with an agglomerated Zr-SBA-15/bentonite catalyst

Zr-SBA-15 material has been agglomerated with bentonite clay to form a macroscopic structured catalyst with particle sizes of 1.5 mm with the purpose of being used in the continuous production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil on a packed bed reactor. The influence of different reaction parameters was assessed including methanol to oil molar ratio, residence time and temperature. The pellet-type Zr-SBA-15/bentonite catalyst was highly active in the continuous flow process leading to a steady molar FAME yield of ca. 96% at 210 °C and 70 bar with a methanol to oil molar ratio of 50:1 and a residence time of 30 min. Long-time on stream experiments revealed an outstanding stability of the Zr-SBA-15 particulate material, since this provided a sustained FAME yield of 96% for over 260 h, being negligible the deactivation of the catalyst during this period. Bentonite clay partially contributed to the methanolysis reaction of triglycerides during the early stages of the reaction, but after a short period (1 h) its influence on the reaction became very low. In this way, the outstanding catalytic performance of the agglomerated catalyst must be attributed mainly to the presence of active acid sites in the Zr-SBA-15 material. The leaching of metal species (Na, K, Ca and Mg) coming from bentonite binder was low in the outlet effluent. Catalyst did not suffer any significant changes in physicochemical properties after the long-time on stream experiment, preserving zirconium content and acid capacity.

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► Production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil in a packed bed reactor.
► Agglomerated Zr-SBA-15/bentonite is confirmed as active and stable catalyst in the transesterification of triglycerides with methanol.
► The process displays high potential for the conversion of low grade feedstock.