Aleurites moluccana as a Potential Non-edible Feedstock for IndustrialScale Biodiesel Synthesis Using Homemade Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles as a Catalyst

Biodiesel is a potential substitute for fossil oils because of its almost similar physico-chemical fuel properties to fossil diesel. The present work aimed to synthesize biodiesel from the non-edible seed oil of Aleurites moluccana using ZnO nanoparticles synthesized in the laboratory. The synthesis and physical properties of ZnO nanoparticles were confirmed through XRD and SEM. Moreover, the fuel properties of the synthesized biodiesel were checked through the standard procedures of ASTM and compared with the limits of ASTM. The chemical properties were studied quantitatively and qualitatively through FT-IR, GC-MS, and NMR spectroscopy. The result confirms that the current feedstock is suitable for biodiesel synthesis on industrial scale because of its oil contents (47.2%). The transesterification process was followed as the FFA value of the oil is 0.39 KOH mg/kg. Parametric experiments were conducted in a sequence to set a condition for optimum yield. The result indicates that optimum biodiesel yield was achieved at 1:27 oil to methanol ratio using 25 mg catalyst concentration at a temperature of 60 degrees C, and a reaction time of 60 min. It is obvious from the result that most of the fuel properties were according to the standards of ASTM D-6751. Furthermore, GC-MS analysis confirms 14 different types of fatty acids methyl esters in the feedstock. FT-IR, 1H-NMR, and 13C-NMR analysis showed important peaks that confirm the successful synthesis of biodiesel. The physico-chemical properties of the synthesized biodiesel confirm that it is a competitive source for manufacturing biodiesel on commercial scale.