Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
55241 | Catalysis Today | 2012 | 5 Pages |
Active biodiesel production catalysts were derived from waste eggshells by simple calcination in air. The physicochemical properties of the activated catalysts were characterized by XRD, N2 sorption, CO2-TPD, TGA–DTG, XRF, and SEM, while the catalytic activity was tested in producing biodiesel via transesterification on palm oil with methanol under microwave conditions. The effect of microwave power, reaction time, methanol-to-oil ratio, and catalyst loading was investigated. The experimental results revealed that the catalysts exhibited a high content of CaO (99.2 wt%) with a high density of strong base sites. The catalytic testing demonstrated a remarkable enhancement for biodiesel production using microwaves compared to conventional heating. The maximum yield of fatty acid methyl esters reached 96.7% under the optimal condition of reaction time of 4 min with 900 W microwave power, methanol-to-oil ratio of 18:1, and catalyst loading of 15%. The results indicated that the CaO catalysts derived from eggshells showed good reusability and had high potential to be used as biodiesel production catalysts under microwave-assisted transesterification of palm oil.
Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload high-quality image (152 K)Download as PowerPoint slideHighlights► The industrial eggshell wastes as heterogeneous biodiesel production catalysts. ► Microwave-assisted biodiesel production. ► The strong base site with average basic site density of 194 μmol m−2. ► Above 96%FAME can be produced within 10 min in microwave process catalyzed by the eggshell-derived catalysts. ► The catalyst is reusable for at least 5 cycles.