Residual oil from babassu (Orbignya sp.), a low-cost raw material, was used in the enzymatic esterification for biodiesel production, using lipase B from Candida antarctica (Novozym® 435) and ethanol. For the first time in the literature, residual babassu oil and Novozym® 435 are being investigated to obtain biodiesel. In this communication, response surface methodology (RSM) and a central composite design (CCD) were used to optimize the esterification and study the effects of four factors (molar ratio (1:1–1:16, free fatty acids (FFAs) /alcohol), temperature (30–50 °C), biocatalyst content (0.05–0.15 g) and reaction time (2–6 h)) in the conversion into fatty acid ethyl esters. Under optimized conditions (1:18 molar ratio (FFAs/alcohol), 0.14 g of Novozym® 435, 48 °C and 4 h), the conversion into ethyl esters was 96.8%. It was found that after 10 consecutive cycles of esterification under optimal conditions, Novozym® 435 showed a maximum loss of activity of 5.8%, suggesting a very small change in the support/enzyme ratio proved by Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and insignificant changes in the surface of Novozym® 435 proved by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) after the 10 consecutive cycles of esterification.

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RESUMO -Diferente da rota química, a utilização da rota enzimática na produção de biodiesel garante vantagens como a fácil recuperação do biocatalisador, a elevada seletividade e a menor formação de produtos secundários. Partindo-se disso, este trabalho tem como objetivo a síntese de ésteres etílicos (biodiesel) por meio da esterificação do óleo de frango, utilizando-se de lipases combinadas. Para tal resultado, empregaram-se, na combinação enzimática, ensaios que verificassem a atividade da enzima, chagando-se na combinação das lipases comerciais Lipozyme ® RM-IM (75%) e Novozyme ® 435 (25%), para uma razão molar 1:1 (etanol: óleo de frango), em agitação de 150 rpm e para as condições experimentais fatoriais completas 2³ geradas pelo software STATISTICA ® , sendo a melhor conversão do substrato em ésteres etílicos (58,85±0,38%) nas condições 40°C, usando 6% de biocatalisador e 10% de água. Ao final, a produção do biodiesel foi confirmada por meio da análise qualitativa da Cromatografia em Camada Delgada -(CDD), o que também indicou a formação de ácidos graxos não reagidos.

Enzymes are biocatalysts that allow natural catalysis under mild reaction conditions and are highly selective. In order to increase enzyme stability and facilitate its recovery and reuse, enzymes are immobilized onto magnetic nanoparticles. In this context, this study aims to analyze the maintenance of the catalytic activity of Candida antartica Lipase B immobilized onto magnetic nanoparticles applied to the production of methyl butyrate and ethyl butyrate through esterification. Analyzing the effects of temperature, the best conversion rate was 78.48% for ethyl butyrate at 35 °C, while the conversion rate for methyl butyrate was 80.67% at a substrate concentration of 0.5 mol/L. Analyzing the molar ratio (acid: alcohol), the best conversion rate (44.71%) was obtained for ethyl butyrate using a molar ratio of 1:1.