Effect of Zn on anocatalyst on biodiesel synthesis from different feedstocks

摘要

In the present study, an active heterogeneous Zn Onanocatalyst was synthesized from Costus I gneus leaf extract and the catalytic activity was investigated for the transesterification of biodiesel from various feed stocks such as waste cooking oil (WCO),fish oil (FO) and jatropha oil (JO). The catalyst was characterized using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) to ascertain its versatility. The high catalytic activity of the catalyst may be ascribed owing to their large base strength, small particle size and large BET surface areas. The performance of the catalyst was strongly influenced by the reaction parameters like concentration of the catalyst, methanol to oil molar ratio, reaction temperature and reaction time. These parameters were optimized toobtain a maximum FAME yield of 96.8,97.2 and 98.1% for WCO, FO and JO respectively. The reuse of catalyst on JO exhibits better yield compared to WCO and FO.