Coal fly ash (CFA) and bottom ash (BA) obtained from coal fired power plants in Thailand and local supplier were characterized using XRF, XRD and N2 adsorption-desorption techniques. Their possibilities for conversion of palm oil into biodiesel were investigated. Selected CFA was also modified with lanthanum (La) at different La loading and the influence of La loading on biodiesel conversion was evaluated. The resulted showed that the Class C CFA as contained large amount of CaO (free lime) could catalyze the transesterification to achieve the highest FAME content of 89% under the operation conditions; the reaction temperature of 200 °C, the reaction pressure of 39 bars, the catalyst loading of 5 wt% of oil, the molar of oil to methanol of 1:30 and the stirring speed of 600 rpm for 5 h. The addition of La on the Class C CFA had a negative effect on conversion of palm oil. The FAME content decreased gradually from 89 to 62% with increasing La loading from 0 to 1 wt%.
