Biodiesel Production from Waste Frying Oils by Potassium Methoxide Supported on Activated Carbon Catalysts from Lignocellulosic Biomass

Various carbon-rich solid catalysts are evaluated for the synthesis of biodiesel from waste frying oil. The study results showed that the use of activated carbon made of corn stalk could increase the biodiesel yield by 7%. The heterogeneous carbon-based catalysts made of lignocellulosic residues could successfully improve the quality of biodiesel properties. The results obtained revealed that the biodiesel properties, including relative density (852–900 kg·m−3) and kinematic viscosity (2.4–3.9 mm2·s−1), are in compliance with the standard limits of ASTM and the European Biodiesel Standard, suggesting that the biodiesel produced would be decent as a diesel fuel that potentially can minimize the serious damage of engine parts, and prolong the engine life.

Developing a Robust Model Based on the Gaussian Process Regression Approach to Predict Biodiesel Properties

Biodiesel is assumed a renewable and environmentally friendly fuel that possesses the potential to substitute petroleum diesel. The basic purpose of the present study is to design a precise algorithm based on Gaussian Process Regression (GPR) model with several kernel functions, i.e., Rational Quadratic, Squared Exponential, Matern, and Exponential, to estimate biodiesel properties. These properties include kinematic viscosity (KV), pour point (PP), iodine value (IV), and cloud point (CP) as a function of fatty acid composition. In order to develop this model, some variables are assumed, such as molecular weight, carbon number, double bond numbers, monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acid, weight percent of saturated acid, and temperature. The performance and efficiency of the GPR model are measured through several statistical criteria and the results are summarized in root mean square error (RMSE) and coefficients of determination ( R 2 ). R 2 and RMSE are sorted as 0.992 & 0.15697, 0.998 & 0.96580, 0.966 & 1.38659, and 0.968 & 1.56068 for four properties such as KV, IV, CP, and PP, respectively. It is worth to mention this point that the kernel function Squared Exponential shows a great performance for IV and PP and kernel functions Exponential and Matern indicate appropriate efficiency for CP and KV properties, respectively. On the other hand, the results of the offered GPR models are compared with those of the previous models, LSSVM-PSO and ANFIS. The outcomes proved the superiority of this model over two former models in point of estimating the biodiesel properties.

Assessment of Proximate and Physico-Chemical Potentials of Crude Kernel Oil Extracts of Canarium schweinfurthii Engl

The finite, depleting and unsustainable nature of fossil fuels remained a global concern. This had continued to stir up an urgent need to consider cheaper renewable and sustainable alternative. Consequently, the assay of proximate and physico-chemical potentials of crude kernel oil extracts of Canarium schweinfurthii Engl. was conducted. This was intended to evaluate the nutritional and some of the inherent biodiesel properties. The procedure according to Association of Official and Analytical Chemist (AOAC) were deployed to analyze the proximate, physico-chemical and fatty acids contents of the crude kernel oil extracted of the test plant. It was found that the oil sample of the test plant had 9.25±0.05% (moisture content), 6.10±0.09% (crude fiber), 23.62±0.02% (crude protein), 44.35 ±0.04% (crude lipid), 10.35±0.04% (ash) and 6.33±0.03% (carbohydrate). The physico – chemical assay of the oil revealed promising biodiesel properties with relative density (0.966±0.01g/cm3), refractive index (1.465±0.05 at 30°C), calorific value (38.93±0.13MJ/kg), viscosity value (150.1±0.70 mm2/s), saponification value (220.30±0.98 mgKOH/g), peroxide value (4.26 ± 0.08meq/Kg), acid value (2.49±0.04 mgKOH/g), iodine value (64.70±0.10 g/100g) and cetane number (56.52±0.68). Furthermore, 14-methyl Pentadecanoic acid, methyl ester (C17H34O2), 13,16-Octadecanoic acid, methyl ester (C19H34O2) and Heptacosanoic acid, methyl ester (C28H56O2) were the assayed fatty acids content of crude kernel oil extract of C. schweinfurthii. These had relative percentage abundance (RPA) of 25.80±0.04%, 67.60±0.30% and 6.60±0.03%. The findings clearly elucidated the biodiesel potential of the kernel oil sample of C. schweinfurthii and consequently recommended its incorporation. In this regard, it became imperative for concerted afforestation efforts that would guarantee its sustainable utilization.