Feasibility Study of Melon Seed Oil as a Source of Biodiesel

摘要

Melon seed oils were extracted at a very high yield of 52.2%. The extracted oil was subjected to oil quality tests and subsequently transesterified to give fatty acid methyl esters or biodiesel. The biodiesel was also subjected to fuel quality tests. The results showed that the extracted oil had specific gravity of 0.91 and moisture content of 0.90% indicating that the oil is a very good energy source, a good candidate for transesterification and will not be easily susceptible to microbial attack and autooxidation. The fuel quality parameters of the produced biodiesel showed that it conforms to standards for biodiesel and compares well with a standard petrodiesel.