Catalyst and Elemental Analysis Involving Biodiesel from Various Feedstocks

Abstract

The world is currently faced with the depletion of fossil fuel energy sources and their use is associated with environmental pollution. This has triggered the need to seek alternative energy sources that are renewable, sustainable and environmentally benign. Biodiesel, an alternative fuel of interest, is obtainable from biomass feedstocks. In existing biodiesel fuel, there are concerns that it is a contaminant due to its elemental contents, which over time also affect its quality. This study aimed to investigate the influence of a bifunctional catalyst on the conversion of free fatty acids and the elemental composition of biodiesel obtained from waste oils of sunflower and palm feedstocks. The synthesised catalyst was characterised using BET, XRD, FTIR and SEM while ICP-OES and Rancimat were used for elemental contents and oxidation in feedstocks and biodiesels. The effect of Cu, Zn and Fe metals on the stability of synthesised biodiesel was further studied. The catalyst showed characteristics of bifunctionality with improved textural properties necessary for the conversion of high free fatty acids feedstocks to biodiesel, despite increasing Ca content within the produced biodiesel. Sunflower biodiesel showed superior fuel quality, although palm biodiesel had more oxidation stability. An increase in the concentration of metals decreased the induction period, with Cu and Fe being more effective than Zn metal.

An ICP-MS study on metal content in biodiesel and bioglycerol produced from heated and unheated canola oils

“…Table 8 compares the trace metal levels in biodiesel produced from waste sunflower oil (Simbi et al 2021 ), waste palm oil (Simbi et al 2021 ), waste cooking oil (Park et al 2019 ), and waste canola oil (Hossain et al 2010 ) from the literature with those reported in this study. As shown in this table, trace metal levels from the literature are comparable with those found in biodiesels produced from heated canola oils at 190 and 240 °C.…”