Production and biodegradability of biodiesel from balanites aegyptiaca seed oil

Abstract

Seed oil of Balanites aegyptica was transesterified to produce biodiesel and its quality and biodegradability assessed. The specific gravity (SG), density and flash point of the methyl esters were found to be 0.897, 0.89 g/cm3 and 163 °C respectively. Biodegradability of the biodiesel assessed by the standard CO2 evolution method using two different inoculums revealed that the Balanites aegyptica biodiesel was readily biodegradable in both inoculums (82.58% and 86.98%), compared with the D 2 diesel which was partially biodegradable (27.02% and 27.33%). These suggest that Balanites aegyptiaca seed oil is a potential source of environmentally friendly biodiesel.