Open AccessEFFECTIVENESS OF PROCESS INTENSIFICATION OF SMALL-SCALE BIODIESEL PLANTS: STUDIES ON PRODUCT REPRODUCIBILITY AND QUALITY
Author(s) -
Yoel Pasae,
Eda Lolo Allo,
Corvis L Rantererung
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
xi'nan jiaotong daxue xuebao
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 0258-2724
DOI - 10.35741/issn.0258-2724.56.5.46
Subject(s) - biodiesel , biodiesel production , pulp and paper industry , soybean oil , acid value , waste management , environmental science , process engineering , chemistry , engineering , food science , chemical engineering , organic chemistry , catalysis
Process intensification is an innovation implemented in the design and development of processes and equipment, which can provide significant benefits for process efficiency, product selectivity and quality, energy efficiency, less waste, and process safety. Intensification of technological processes is classified into two main groups: intensification of equipment and processing methods. This study used the process and equipment intensification into a small-scale biodiesel plant system with 5 liters/batch capacity. The system consists of a reaction process unit integrated with a methanol recovery process unit and a separation unit integrated with a biodiesel purification unit. This study aims to test the reproducibility and quality of biodiesel products in small-scale factories using palm oil and soybean oil. The results showed that the small-scale biodiesel plant provided fairly good performance in the form of reproducibility, namely a consistent biodiesel yield in the range of 74.54%-77.8% and biodiesel quality that met the Indonesian National Standard. In the process using palm oil, the yield of biodiesel is 74.54%-76.5%, glycerol 6.9%-9.0%, and methanol recovery 7.5%-9.0%, with a physical viscosity of 2.89 mm2/s, density 0.86 g/mL, and acid value 0.45 mg KOH/g. As for the process using soybean oil, biodiesel yield is 77.4%-77.8%, glycerol 6%-6.5%, and methanol recovery 8.4%-8.9%, with a physical viscosity of 1.97 mm2/s, density 0.85 g/mL, and acid value 0.45 mg KOH/g. The biodiesel composition from palm oil is dominated by methyl oleate, methyl palmitate, and methyl stearate. In comparison, biodiesel composition from soybean oil is dominated by methyl palmitate, methyl linoleate, and methyl isostearate.