Production and characterization of biodiesel from Annona muricata seed oil

Abstract

Due to the depletion of available energy resources, the usage of fossil fuel has increased steadily. Additionally, the gas emissions of fossil fuel proved to be harmful to the environment. Therefore, researches now focus on utilizing second-generation biodiesel that do not compete with edible seed oils but still can be of great use as an alternative to commercially-produced diesel. The purpose of this research is to extract the oil from Annona muricata (Guyabano) seeds and convert it to biodiesel by esterification using hydrochloric acid and transesterification using potassium hydroxide. The average oil yield was 18.92% while the average crude biodiesel yield was 94.76%. The characterization results of the biodiesel composed of 5% guyabano methyl ester in commercial diesel (B5) were all within the limits set by the Philippine National Standards (PNS). However, the water content for the pure biodiesel (B100) was not within the standard range. The kinematic viscosity of B100 is at the maximum limit of PNS. Nevertheless, it suggests that pure Guyabano biodiesel has the potential to be utilized in diesel engines.