Production of Biodiesel Using Acetone as a CoSolvent

Transportation of products and people account for around 80% of global energy use, implying a high reliance on fossil fuels in our daily life. CO2 is a greenhouse gas produced by the combustion of fossil fuels, which contributes to global warming and deforestation. As a result, the quest for sustainable, renewable alternative fuels such as biodiesel is becoming increasingly important. In this research, researchers have used waste cooking oil (acid value 1.86 mg KOH / g) to produce biodiesel. Acetone was used as a co-solvent to overcome the mass transfer barrier. Biodiesel production was increased by adjusting the acetone-to-methanol molar ratio, reaction temperature, reaction time, and stirring speed. The optimum reaction parameters were 20% methanol-to-oil volume ratio, 1 wt. % KOH, 0.6: 1 acetone-to-methanol molar ratio, 10- minute reaction duration, 40°C reaction temperature, and 600 rpm stirring speed. These conditions yielded 98.46 wt. % biodiesel. Co-solvent biodiesel satisfies ASTM standards under ideal conditions