Biodiesel production from used cooking oils

The purpose of this work is production of biodiesel from Used Cooking Oils (UCO) and to investigate fuel characteristics. Biodiesel fuel can be made from new or used vegetable oils and animal fats, which are non-toxic, biodegradable, renewable resources. The vegetable oil fuels are not acceptable because they are more expensive than petroleum fuels. Biodiesel has become more attractive recently because of its environmental benets. With recent ncreases in petroleum prices and uncertainties concerning petroleum availability, there is renewed interest in vegetable oil fuels for diesel engines. Used cooking oils are for production of biodiesel and also lower the cost of biodiesel. In this study UCO was obtained from the Chips Industry. It consists of 90 - 97 W % of FFA (Palmitic, Oleic, Linoleic) and the rest are sitosterol and traces impurities. Conditions for methanolysis of UCO were 1.8 % H2SO4 as catalyst, MeOH/oil of molar ratio 1 : 0.1 and reaction temperature 63 °C, for a period of 3h. The yield of methyl ester was > 90 % in 1.5 h.

Keywords:

Biodiesel , Used Cooking Oils , Transesterification , Emission , Air Pollutant