Zinc oxide-co-sodium zirconate: A fast heterogeneous catalyst for biodiesel production from soybean oil

Ricardo Rodríguez-Ramírez, Fabiola S. Sosa-Rodríguez, Jorge Vazquez-Arenas

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

In this study, Zinc Oxide-co-Sodium Zirconate (ZnO·Na2ZrO3) is synthesized utilizing a solid-state method with the aim of performing a fast transesterification of triglycerides contained in soybean oil, to be competitive against the homogeneous process employing caustic soda. This procedure enabled to synthesize a composite catalyst with enhanced properties for this application. The material is characterized using Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area analysis isotherms, X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) coupled to Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDXS), finding a denser structure with sodium zirconate lamellas collapsed each other, with a surface area of 0.7 m2 g-1, and a weight composition close to the theoretical value, without the presence of impurities. Using this composite catalyst, 97% of biodiesel conversion is produced in 15 min at 65 °C (i.e. methanol boiling point), with 4.5 wt% catalyst, methanol: oil molar ratio of 14:1, and stirring speed of 500 rpm, as optimal conditions obtained from a Box-Behnken Experimental Design (BBD) along with a Response Surface Methodology (RSM). The chemical composition of biodiesel is evaluated through FT-IR spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) measurements.

Original languageEnglish
Article number108191
JournalJournal of Environmental Chemical Engineering
Volume10
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2022

Keywords

  • Box-Behnken design
  • Heterogeneous catalysis
  • Sodium Zirconate
  • Transesterification of triglycerides, Biodiesel
  • Zinc Oxide

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