CATALYTIC CONVERSION OF THEVETIA PERUVIANA OIL INTO BIODIESEL BY TIO2-ZNO NANOCATALYST

Abstract

Exploration of new heterogeneous catalyst for biodiesel production and the use of non-edible vegetable oils as a sustainable source favourably could contribute to bioenergy research. In this regard the present investigation aims to demonstrate the catalytic activity of TiO 2-ZnO nanocatalyst towards the biodiesel production from Thevetia Peruviana oil. The prepared catalyst has been characterized through XRD, FT-IR and SEM techniques. We have used Thevetia Peruviana oil as a non-edible vegetable oil feedstock for biodiesel production. This oil seed bearing tree species is widely available in the NorthEastern region of India. Biodiesel has been produced by transesterification process in which Thevetia Peruviana oil is allowed to react with methanol in 1:6 molar ratio, in presence of TiO 2-ZnO nanocatalyst comprising 6 wt% of the oil. The temperature was maintained at 65 0 C and the reaction was allowed to run for 5 hours maintaining rpm 600. The synthesized biodiesel is then characterized using 1 HNMR technique. The conversion of biodiesel has also been determined using 1 HNMR technique and was found to be 94.11%. This study proves to be beneficial in the exploration of heterogeneous catalysts for biodiesel production because heterogeneous catalytic transesterification have many advantages over homogeneous transesterification such as catalyst can be recycled, lesser amount of waste water produced and separation of biodiesel from glycerol is easier. The use of nanocatalyst shows higher catalytic activity, easier to separate and reusable that produces improved biodiesel fuel at very low cost. The TiO 2-ZnO nanocatalyst shows good catalytic performance and hence can be used