Biodiesel Production Using a Photocatalytic Process: A Review

There is a growing demand for use of alternative clean energy as against fossil fuel. In trying to meet these demands, researchers are investigating various approaches towards delivering affordable clean energy from the abundant biomass in our environment, including biodiesel. Esterification of oils is one of the advanced methods of oil technology, which changes the main structure of glycerides without causing chemical changes in the fatty acid that forms the structure of triglycerides. Biodiesel is an alternative fuel that is renewable and produces less harmful gases than fossil fuels. Among the sources of biodiesel are vegetable oils and animal fat. The use of free solar light sources is significant for producing clean energy and reducing the economic costs of photocatalysts. In the present work, these issues have been addressed and the work done has been reviewed. The focus of this research is to examine the studies conducted to investigate the efficiency of biofuel production from edible and non-edible oils using photocatalysts. Studies have shown the production of biodiesel with high efficiency. High efficiency for biodiesel production from this method shows the future use of this fuel.