production of biodiesel from waste cooking oil and factor affects

1. RESEARCH ARTICLE
BIO-DIESEL PRODUCTION FROM WASTE COOKING OIL WITH
FACTOR AFEECTS TO ITS FORMATION:
Abdul Karim Chaudhary,Dr.Keshavendra Choudhary Shashikant Sharma,
akc3582@gmail.com,hoi.engg@peoplesuniversity.edu.in
shashikant.sharma313@gmail.com
Research Scholar (MTech, Thermal Engg) Department of mechanical engineering
,SORT Peoples University,Bhopal,India
Principal& professor SORT Peoples University,Bhopal,India
Associate professor Department of mechanical engineering ,SORT Peoples
University,Bhopal,India
ABSTRACT
Waste cooking oil which contain large amount of fatty acids are collected by the
environmental protection in many parts of the world. Continuous use of petroleum sourced
fuels is now widely recognized as unsustainable because of depleting supplies and the
contribution of these fuels to the accumulation of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide in the
environment. Renewable, carbon neutral, transport fuels are necessary for environmental
and economic sustainability. The aim of work, biodiesel was extracted double stage trans-
esterification process from waste cooking oil and to study the performance and emission
characteristics of diesel engine.
In this study, waste cooking oil was used to extract the bio-diesel. The extracted bio
diesel was blended with sole fuel and B20% blend (20% of bio diesel + 80% of diesel) has
been selected. From literature review, it is understood that B20% blend the engine can run
without any modification in the operational parameters and enhance the performance of the
engine with bio-diesel. From the experimental investigation it was observed that the brake
thermal efficiency increased for B20% blend by 1.5% when compared to that of conventional
diesel fuel. The CO, HC, Smoke were found to
bone.” The alcohol breaks off the three fatty acid chains from the glycerine and then
attaches to each of the three free fatty acid chains making a fatty acid ester, decrease with
the B20% blend with slightly increase in NOx emission compared to that of sole fuel.

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Key Words: Bidiesel,waste cooking oil, Pyrolysis,Micro- emulsification,transesterifacatio
INTRODUCTION
In recent years, biodiesel has gained international attention as a source of
alternative fuel due to characteristics like high degradability, no toxicity, and low emission of
carbon monoxide, particulate matter and unburned hydrocarbons. Biodiesel is a mixture of
alkyl esters and it can be used in conventional compression ignitions engines, which need
almost no modification. As well, biodiesel can be used as heating oil and as fuel. So far, this
alternative fuel has been successfully produced by transesterification of vegetable oils and
animal fats using homogeneous basic catalysts (mainly sodium or potassium hydroxide
dissolved in methanol). Traditional homogeneous catalysts (basic or acid) possess
advantages including high activity (complete conversion within 1 h) and mild reaction
conditions (from 40 to 65 °C and atmospheric pressure). However, the use of homogeneous
catalysts leads to soap production. Besides, in the homogeneous process the catalyst is
consumed thus reducing the catalytic efficiency. This causes an increase in viscosity and the
formation of gels. In addition, the method for the removal of the catalyst after reaction is
technically difficult and a large amount of wastewater is produced in order to separate and
clean the products, which increases the overall cost of the process. Thus, the total cost of
the biodiesel production based on homogeneous catalysis, is not yet sufficiently competitive
as compared to the cost of diesel production from petroleum.
An alternative is the development of heterogeneous catalysts that could eliminate
the additional running costs associated with the aforementioned stages of separation and
purification. In addition, the use of heterogeneous catalysts does not produce soap through
free fatty acid neutralization and triglyceride saponification. Therefore, development of
efficient heterogeneous catalysts is important since opens up the possibility of another
pathway for biodiesel production. The efficiency of the heterogeneous process depends,
however, on several variables such as type of oil, molar ratio alcohol to oil, temperature and
catalyst type. So, one among alternate production methods of biodiesel is catalytic cracking

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to improve quality of oil. This process is selected for production of biodiesel from mango
seed oil.
Environmental pollution is very serious problem for our human beings and flora-
fauna. The environment is polluted day by day from industrial emissions and road vehicles
emissions. Petrol engine and diesel engine produced different types of harmful gases during
combustion like NOx, CO, CO2, HC and some quantity SOx due to incomplete combustion.
These gases are produced by different engine factor such as piston bowl geometry, injection
timing, compression ratio etc. These entire factors also affect the combustion efficiency, fuel
consumption and engine brake power. To reduce the emissions engine manufacturers try to
best design, the combustion chamber and other level. At combustion chamber geometry
design to reduce the NOx many researchers studied the different piston bowl geometry.
Flow phenomena in internal combustion (IC) engines are extremely complex, and
the flow field is further complicated by the presence of swirl, squish, tumble and chemical
reactions. A complete understanding of the physical processes of fluid motion in combustion
chambers is essential in developing efficient engine design and control diagnostics.
Diesel engines have been greatly improved in terms of efficiency and reduced
emission level. However, the combustion process also depends highly on an efficient fuel-air
mixture, particularly in high-speed direct-injection diesel engines. Among these processes,
the flow conditions inside the cylinder at the end of the compression stroke and near the top
dead center are critical for fuel air mixing, wall heat transfer and engine performance
improvement. The mixing process is affected by the intake swirls, fuel injection system and
combustion chamber configuration. Thus good engine operation requires fuel spray
matching air movement and combustion chamber configuration.
Most of our energy requirements are met by fossil fuels for good technological
reasons. Depletion of the petroleum reserves is a big concern, it is estimated that the world
resources of oil will be exhausted within 50 years. Environmental concern about air pollution
caused by the combustion of fossil fuels has also lead to serious implications. The diesel
engine is main prime movers compare to any other engine in transportations, power
generation and many miscellaneous applications i.e. in industries and agriculture. The major

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pollutants from diesel engine are smoke, particulate matter (PM), carbon monoxide (CO),
nitrogen oxides (NOx) and unburnt hydrocarbons (UBHC). Incomplete combustion increases
the pollution level as compared to proper combustion. Due to reliance on transport
consumptions of fossil fuels has increase drastically and the world witness long term
damage to the climate. As transport is one of the few industrial sectors where emissions are
still growing and this fact has made transport a major contributor of green house gases
(GHGs). Generally carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, ozone etc are known as green
house gases. These gases interact with solar terrestrial radiation and causing imbalance on
the Earth’s climate system and increases earth surface temperature.
Methods
Generally the direct use of vegetable oils in the diesel engine is not preferred due to
their high viscosity. Four methods to reduce the high viscosity of vegetable oils to enable
their use in common diesel engines without operational problems such as engine deposits
have been investigated.
 Pyrolysis;
 Micro-emulsification;
 Dilution; and
 Transesterification.
Transesterification Process
Transesterification is also called alcoholysis, is the displacement of alcohol from on
ester by another alcohol in a process similar to hydrolysis.
This process has been widely used to reduce the viscosity of triglycerides. The
transesterification reaction is represented by the general equation
R COOR’ + R” R COOR” + R’ OH

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If methanol is used in the above reaction, it is formed as methanolysis. The reaction
of glyceride with methanol is represent by the general equation triglycerides are readily
transesterified in the presence of alkaline catalyst at atmospheric pressure and at a
temperature of approximately go to 70C with an excess of methanol. The mixture at end of
the reaction is allowed to settle. The lower glycerol layer is drawn off while the upper methyl
ester layer is washed to remove entrained glycerol and is then processed further.
The excess methanol is recovered by distillation and sent to rectifying column for
purification and recycled. The transesterification works well when the starting oil is of light
quantity. However, quite often low quality oils are used as raw materials for biodiesel
preparation. In case where the free fatty acid content of the oil is above 4%, difficulty arise
due to formation of soaps which promote emulsification during the water working stage and
at an FFA content above 2% he process becomes unworkable.
If the free fatty acid content of the oil is below 4% single stage process is adopted. If
the free fatty acid content s greater than 4% double stage process is adopted.
Process variable in transesterification
The most important variable that influence transesterification reaction time and
conversion are;
 Oil temperature
 Reaction temperature
 Ratio of alcohol to oil
 Intensity of mixing
 Purity of reactants
 Catalyst type and concentration
Benefits of biodiesel
One of the main driving forces for biodiesel widespread use is the limitation of
greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 being the major one) by the Kyoto Protocol. Along 9 with

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ethanol and other biomass derived fuels, biodiesel is an important bio-energy. When plants
photosynthesize, they use the sun's energy to pull CO2 out of the atmosphere and
incorporate it into biomass. Part of the solar energy is locked into the chemical structure
within the biomass. There are a number of thermal, chemical or microbial processes that can
be used to release this energy or convert it into a more convenient form for human use. As a
form of bio-energy, biodiesel is nearly carbon-neutral, i.e., the CO2 it produces on burning
will be absorbed naturally from CO2 in the air and recycled without an overall net increase in
the atmospheric CO2 inventory, thus making an almost zero contribution to global warming
There are many distinct benefits of using biodiesel compare to diesel fuel.
 Considered to be environmental friendly, biodiesel is one of the most renewable
fuels compare to diesel fuel.
 It is biodegradable.
 It is derived from a renewable domestic resource, thus reducing dependence on and
preserving petroleum. It can be domestically produced, offering the possibility of
reducing petroleum imports,
 Reductions of most exhaust emissions relative to conventional diesel fuel,
generating lower emissions of hydrocarbons, particulates and carbon monoxide;
 Biodiesel has a relatively higher flash point, >150 °C, indicating that it presents a
very low fire hazard; leading to safer handling and storage,
 Biodiesel provides greater lubricity than petroleum diesel, thus reducing engine
wear. In fact, biodiesel can be used as a lubricity enhancer for low-sulphur
petroleum diesel formulations,
 Toxicity tests show that biodiesel is considerably less toxic than diesel fuel (Haws,
1997).
 Biodiesel can be used directly in most diesel engines without requiring extensive
engine modifications.
The process of converting waste cooking oil into biodiesel can be broken down into
five primary sequential steps in figure 4.1

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Figure 4.1. Generalized waste cooking oil-to-biodiesel fuel process flow
diagram
1. The first step is the waste oil collection. While each collection technique can be
different, it requires coordination between the collectors and the oil producing facility
(restaurant, community, cafeteria, municipality, etc.).
2. The second step is a pre-treatment process, which is broken into two sub-steps. The
oil is most likely to contain residual water, as well as solid food particles. Therefore, the
first pre-treatment step is to separate out the water and solids. This is crucial to ensure
full conversion of oil to biodiesel, described further below. Once separated, the oil is
then titrated to determine the concentration of free fatty acids (FFA). This determines
the necessary amount of catalyst for the transesterification reaction.
3. Following the pre-treatment process, the waste cooking oil feedstock is ready for the
transesterification reaction. The oil, a triglyceride, reacts with an alcohol, Waste Oil
Collection Pre-treatment Transesterification Biodiesel and Glycerol Separation
Utilization typically methanol, in the presence of a catalyst to produce fatty acid esters
(Figure 2) [13]. The oil is composed of three fatty acid chains with a glycerine “back or
commonly known as biodiesel. The broken off glycerin is the by-product of this
production process.
4. Once the transesterification reaction is complete, the biodiesel and glycerine will
separate with time, due to their different densities. When the products separate, there
will be two distinct layers with visible color and viscosity differences. The glycerine will
be the bottom layer because it is denser than biodiesel. The glycerine separation step
is simply draining off the bottom layer of glycerine.
5. Once separated, the biodiesel and glycerin by-product can be utilized in appropriate
applications. Biodiesel can be used as a substitute for petroleum diesel fuels (fuel oil for

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heating applications), while glycerin has numerous uses as a food additive, soaps
production, etc.
Bio-diesel production by transesterification method
A laboratory-scale biodiesel production set-up was as shown the figure 4.1. It
consists of a motorized stirrer, straight coil electric heater and stainless steel containers. The
system was designed to produce maximum 5 liter of biodiesel. Temperature of the mixture
of the triglyceride, methanol and catalyst were maintained at about 60C.
The method adopted for preparation of biodiesel from Sapotta seed oil for this work
is, transesterification which is a process of using methanol (CH3OH) in the presenceofacatalyst,
such as potassium hydroxide (KOH), to chemically break the molecule of Sapotta seed oil into an
ester and glycerol. This process is a reaction of the oil with an alcohol to remove the glycerine,
which is a by-product of biodiesel production.
figure Schematic diagram of Biodiesel Plant (5 lit. Capacity)
The procedure done is given below: 1000ml of waste cooking oil is taken in a
container. 15 grams of Potassium hydroxide alkaline catalyst (KOH) is weighed. 200 ml of
methanol is taken is beaker. KOH is mixed with the alcohol and it is stirred until they are

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properly dissolved. Waste cooking oil is taken in a container and is stirred with a mechanical
stirrer and simultaneously heated with the help of a heating coil The speed of the stirrer
should be minimum and when the temperature of the raw oil reaches 62 C the KOH-alcohol
solution is poured into the raw oil container and the container is closed with a air tight lid.
Now the solution is stirred at high speeds. Care should be taken that the temperature does
not exceed 62 C as ethanol evaporates at temperatures higher than 60 C. Also the KOH-
alcohol solution is mixed with the waste cooking oil only at 62 C because heat is generated
when KOH and alcohol are mixed together and the temperature of the raw oil should be
more than this when mixing is done if the reactions have to take place properly. After stirring
the animal oil-KOH-alcohol solution at 62 C for ½ an hour the solution is transferred to a
glass container. Now separation takes place and biodiesel gets collected in the upper portion
of the glass container whereas glycerine gets collected in the bottom portion. This glycerine
is removed from the container. Then the biodiesel is washed with water. Again glycerine gets
separated from the biodiesel and is removed. The biodiesel is washed with water repeatedly
until no glycerine is there in the biodiesel. Now this biodiesel is heated to 100 C to vaporize
the water content in it. The resulting product is the biodiesel which is ready for use.
Physical and chemical properties of waste cooking oil
Property Waste cooking oil
Acid value (mg KOH/g) 2.1
Kinematic viscosityat 40oC (cSt) 35.3
Fatty acid composition (wt%)
Myristic (C14:0) 0.9
Palmitic (C16:0) 20.4
Palmitoleic (C16:1) 4.6
Stearic (C18:0) 4.8
Oleic (C18:1) 52.9
Linoleic(C18:2) 13.5
Arachidic (C20:0) 0.12

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CONCLUSION
Biodiesel is a successful alternating fuel and it can be used directly as a fuel in
diesel engine without any modification of engine.Transesterification method is very
common method to reduce the viscosity while producing biodiesel.The main purpose of
biodiesel is to reduce the exhaust emissions in terms of carbon monoxide
(CO),hydrocarbon(HC) and particulate matter.The blend B20% shows significant reduction
in CO,HC and smoke emission when compared to diesel fuel.The NOx emission for
biodiesel is significantly raised.
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