Production of biodiesel from neem seed oil using calcinated banana ash/ li-cao/fe2(so4)3 blends as a catalyst

Abstract

Biodiesel is a possible remedy to the present toxic, finite sources and ever-diminishing crude fuels. Non-edible and locally available (Azadirachta indica) Neem Seed Oil (NSO) as a second-generation feedstock was transformed into biodiesel using Calcined Banana Ash (CBA) derived from banana peels mixed with lithium calcium oxide iron (III) sulphate LiCaO/Fe2(SO4)3 catalyzed transesterification. Transesterification process was employed to minimize the Free Fatty Acid (FFA) content of (NSO) to afford 99.8% yield under the condition of the reaction oil/ methanol ratio 8:1, followed by addition of 1.7 %wt calcinated banana ash and 1.3 %wt Li-CaO / Fe2(SO4)3 catalysts in 53 minutes a notable time. It is important to note that the physicochemical properties of biodiesel in this study such as initial boiling points, flash point, pour point, cloud point, density, kinematic viscosity, final boiling points and cetane index met ASTM D- 6751 and EN 14214 standards. Decomposition profile was displayed by Thermal Gravimetric Analysis (TGA) whereas In-depth analysis by both Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), X-ray Fluorescence (XRF), and Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR) revealed that the high efficiency displayed by a catalyst from banana ash calcined at 650 oC was due to the presence of Potassium, Calcium and Magnesium contents that accounted for the high basicity of up to 11.09 pH. Additionally, the nitrogen adsorption/desorption studies revealed that CBA interestingly exhibits a high BET surface area of 411 m2 /g and promising mesopores (3 nm). The catalyst also displayed better recyclability evidenced by the fact that it was able to be reused after five successive runs with better recyclability of 75%. Basing on the aforementioned properties, this study come up with developing heterogeneous catalyst from available banana peel ash.