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Advanced Nanocatalysts for Biodiesel Production

Article in European Chemical Bulletin · April 2020

DOI: 10.17628/ecb.2020.9.148-153

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Advanced nanocatalysts for biodiesel production Section B-Review

ADVANCED NANOCATALYSTS FOR BIODIESEL

PRODUCTION

Linus N. Okoro[a]* and Gubihama Joel[a]

Keywords: : Nanocatalyst, transesterification, biodiesel, catalyst characterization, homogenous catalysts.

Global energy consumption is on the rise due to increasing industrial capacity of nations. This has made humans to be over reliant on fossil
fuel for energy production. Diminishing fossil fuel reserve and long-term increase in average climate temperature has given rise to energy
shortage and environmental degradation. Renewable energy is an alternative that will offer clean, sustainable and efficient energy. Solar,
wind and hydro have all been explored in this regard. Biodiesel is another promising resource with great potential. It is diesel produced
from organic sources containing free fatty acids through the transesterification reaction process that utilizes alcohols and catalysts. Research
has been undertaken over the years to improve the efficiency of biodiesel production aimed at reducing complexities and cost. The type of
catalysts used influences reaction conditions and biodiesel yield. Heterogeneous nanocatalyst has shown great potential in eradicating
complexities and reducing cost. This review will focus on most recent research works that have used nanocatalyst to produce biodiesel.
Possible areas of research can be explored for advancement in biodiesel production using nanotechnology.

* Corresponding Authors (FFA) or tricylglycerols (TAGs) and a short chain alcohol

E-Mail: linus.okoro@aun.edu.ng either ethanol or methanol using catalyzed or non-catalyzed
[a] Department of Petroleum Chemistry/Engineering
School of Arts and Sciences, American University of Nigeria, thermal reactions. In order to increase the efficiency of
Wuro Hausa 640101, Yola, Nigeria biodiesel production, a catalyst is used. Catalyzed reactions
involve the use of homogeneous or heterogeneous
substances. Heterogeneous catalysts are suitable for
biodiesel fabrication as a result of non-corrosiveness and re-
INTRODUCTION usability without the need for regeneration. However, the
use of heterogeneous catalyst on large scale plants comes
Fossil fuel is an integral part of our day to day lives. It is with some handling complexities. In most cases, biodiesel is
the major source of energy to mankind. Due to high energy used as blends with fossil fuel diesel so as to avoid engine
content associated with carbon fossil fuels, a large amount modifications. Biodiesel improves the purity of diesel
deposited in earth reserves have already been explored. This thereby making it cleaner and environmentally friendly.
has resulted in energy shortage as fossil fuel reserves Nevertheless, they are used 100 % but only in rare cases.4
continue to diminish. Even with the advent of renewable
energy resource, fossil fuel consumption rate continues to The cost of producing biodiesel is cheaper compared to
rise. At the present rate of consumption, experts predict conventional fossil fuel diesel. This is attributed to the cheap
complete run out of fossil fuels by the year 2050.1 raw materials (used and waste oil, and fats from food
industry, household and restaurant) that are used. Using
Fossil fuels also emit greenhouse gases which depletes the nano-catalyst for biodiesel production is expected to further
ozone layer thereby increasing global temperature levels. reduce the general cost of biodiesel production. Their very
One effective way of controlling global warming is through small particle size in the range of 1 to 100 nm increases their
reduction on the use of fossil fuels. This can be achieved by specific surface area thereby making them highly active and
using renewable energy from wind, solar and hydrothermal favorable in the heterogeneously-catalyzed biodiesel
sources. Various technologies have emanated from these production.5
sources and are already in use in many countries. Experts
have projected an estimated 70 % drop in greenhouse gas Over the last decade, scientists have employed carbon
emissions by 2040 due to increase in the demand and use of nanotubes, nanoclays and nanofibers to develop advanced
renewable energy.2 and functional nanomaterials with geometrical sizes below
100 nm for different applications. Synthesis of nano
Biodiesel is another type of renewable energy resource particles, either through physical or chemical means, is
gotten from animals and plants. It is biodegradable and energy dependent. The formation of nuclei following
nontoxic due to its zero greenhouse gas emissions. One clustering and complexation gives rise to nanoparticles
major advantage of biodiesel is the ability to exhibit whose size and structure can be controlled using technology.
excellent cold flow properties similar to diesel from fossil It is evident from the environmental, technological and
fuels. Because the majority of biodiesel source emanates social point of view that nano particles are important due to
from edible sources, it has become a major concern as large their selectivity, durability and recoverability. The ability to
scale production will result in competition with food supply. control the size, shape, spatial distribution, electronic
Therefore, a lot of research has been dedicated to the use of structure and surface composition makes nano-catalysts
nonedible sources for biodiesel production.3 highly selective (100 %), active with long lifespan.
Application of nanocatalysts in chemical industries has
Biodiesel also known as Fatty Acid Methyl Esters improved energy efficiency, optimized feedstock utilization
(FAME) is obtained from reaction between Free Fatty Acids and has reduced global warming. These favorable

Eur. Chem. Bull., 2020, 9(6), 148-153 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17628/ecb.2020.9.148-153 148

Advanced nanocatalysts for biodiesel production Section B-Review

characteristics have made nanocatalysts ideal for production with oil to methanol ratio of 9:1 used. The reaction reached
of environmentally friendly fuels like biodiesel. However, completion in 5 hours at 65 °C. Keihani et al. used the
nanomaterials are yet to be utilized on an industrial scale synthesized biodiesel to make various biodesel blends (B25,
due some problems associated with their usage. These B50 and B75) with petroleum diesel in order to test
problems include difficulty in separation, high pressure drop, improvement in fuel properties. They found B75 and B100
and formation of pulvurent materials. blends to be the best blend due to its favourable density and
viscosity range when compared with international
After nanocatalysts are synthesized, it is important to standards.7
investigate their chemical composition and crystal structure.
The primary aim of characterizing nanocatalysts is to study
their physical and chemical properties. Secondary objectives Thermal decomposition
include degree of aggregation, size distribution, surface area
and surface size. This is because the presence of organic
ligands on surface catalyst or their sized distribution may When catalysts are subjected to pre-treatment under high
influence their properties and possible applications. Credible temperature, the amount of active sites on the catalysts
characterization methods which allow compliance with surface increase. This activity is referred to as thermal
regulations for large scale industrial application have been decomposition. Thermal decomposition increases the
developed. Challenges associated with nanomaterial efficiency of the catalysts by eliminating substances that are
analytics is the lack of appropriate reference materials for absorbed on the surface of the catalyst when exposed to the
tool calibration, complexities in sample preparation and data atmosphere. For instance, CaO exposed to air absorbs water
interpretation.6 Difficulty in measurement of concentration and carbon dioxide on the basic sites thus reducing the
especially in large scale production and waste/effluent amount of basic sites on it. Thermal decomposition
monitoring are great barriers in the analysis of nanoparticles. sometimes determines the shape and basicity of the obtained
Therefore, upscale production requires various methods of catalysts as increase in temperature desorbs molecule that
characterizations to be employed in other to obtain obstruct the active sites.
maximum information on the properties of the synthesized
nanoparticles. In characterization process, the nanoparticles Thermal decomposition technique was explored by
surface, that carries the ligands that influence the physical Mazaheri et al. to produce heterogenous CaO nanocatalyst
properties, are analyzed. Some of the characterization by calcinating, hydrating and dehydrating shells of
techniques that will be discussed in this review include Chicoreus brunneus (Adusta murex). Commercial CaO was
Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), also calcined at high temperature (900 °C) to eliminate
Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-Ray contaminants. Both nanocatalysts were stored in a desiccator
Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Thermo Gravimetric so as to prevent decrease in catalytic activity. The derived
Analysis (TGA), X-ray Diffraction spectroscopy (XRD), nanocatalysts were characterized using analytical techniques
Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), NMR, Carbon such as FTIR, XRD, TEM and BET. Mazaheri et al.
Hydrogen Nitrogen Sulfur test (CHNS), Energy Dispersive developed two models of transesterification processes
X-Ray Spectroscopy (EDX), Brunauer Emmett Teller (BET), known as artificial neural networking and ant colony that
Value Stream Mapping (VSM), N2 adsorption-desorption predicted an optimal biodiesel yield of 93.5 % with minimal
(NAD) and UV-Vis diffuse reflectance (UDR). kinematic viscosity of 4.42 mm2s-1 using CaO nanocatalyst
in 35:1 methanol to RBO at reaction temperature and time
of 1100 °C and 1 h 12 min, respectively. The biodiesel
produced was in conformity with EN 14214 and ASTM
METHODOLOGY D6751 standards.8
For the purpose of this review, only research works
published in reputable journals from 2017 to 2019 were used. Using a conical reactor and thermal decomposition
This is to limit the scope of the study and to focus on more process, 10 g per batch of the nanoferrites catalysts were
recent advancement on the topic. Google Scholar search synthesized and then characterized using XRD. Dantas et al.
engine was used to search for the journals. Open source investigated how Cu2+ ions will affect the morphology,
journals that provided full article were utilized for the magnetism and structure of nanoferrites catalyst
review. A comprehensive analysis dissecting key findings Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 and its consequential influence the activity
and subtopics was undertaken on each paper under review. of the catalyst in the transesterification of soybean oil to
FAME. The catalyst’s texture was analyszed by N2
absorption, heat content analyzed by temperature-
programmed desorption and the magnetism measured. The
LITERATURE REVIEW biodiesel produced was also analyzed by gas
chromatography. Dantas et al. noticed that whenever the
In most cases, scientist prefer to systematicaly synthesize doping of Cu2+ ions increased from 0.0 to 0.4, the saturation
nanocatolyst in the laboratory using methodologies from magnetization value and the surface area of the catalyst
existing literature. However shorter route have been utilized reduced by 36.4 and 37 percent respectively. Hoewver the
to save time by some researchers. For instance, Keihani et al. catalyst still retained its ferromagnetic properties as
purchased calcium oxide nano-catalyst from a malaysian demonstrated by its attraction to magnets. Their findings
vendor for the transesterification of chicken fat. The points to an increase in biodiesel yield within 5.5-85 %
nanocatalyst was characterized to determine its physical range facilitated by the presence of Cu2+ ions which
properties. SEM showed 99 % purity and 50 nm particle size. signifies the potential application of these nanoferrite Cu2+
1 wt. % of the catalyst produced biodiesel of 94.4 % yield doped Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 catalyst in the biodiesel industry.9

Eur. Chem. Bull., 2020, 9(6), 148-153 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17628/ecb.2020.9.148-153 149

Advanced nanocatalysts for biodiesel production Section B-Review

In another study conducted by Raghavendra et al. ZnO The carrier was then added to 1,3-propane sulfone in
nanoparticles were synthesyzed by thermaly decomposing/ appropriate proportion to get the co-precipitate catalyst at
treating zinc nitrate with Garcinia gummi-gutta seed extracts. 80 °C denoted as TiO2/PrSO3H. Gardy et al. went further to
Fixed amount of Zn(NO3)2.6H2O was used used a source of produce biodiesel from used cooking oil using the
zinc and dissolved in 10 ml each of G. gummmi-gutta seed synthesized nanocatalyst. Various analytical methods
extracts (0.2, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5 g). Each of the mixtures was including FTIR, XRD, TEM, XPS and TGA were used to
subjected to high temperatures to form ZnO nanoparticles characterize the synthetic nano-catalyst. Reaction for 9 h at
by first dehydrating then decomposing. Effects of the varous 60 °C yielded 98 % of FAME when 4.5 wt.% loaded
plant extracts were determined in the transesterification catalyst was used together with methanol at 1:15 oil to
process to produce FAMEs. Initial characterization of the methanol molar ratio. The acid nanocatalyst was recycled
nanocatalysts was performed by various techniques such as five times without losing its efficiency. The biodiesel
FTIR, UV-visible, SEM and XRD. Figure 1 shows the produced satisfied European Standard EN and American
spectrum of UV-Vis analysis which reveal a sharp peak at society testing and materials standards, ASTM.12
372 nm wavelength. They further evaluated the
nanoparticles for antioxidant and photoluminescence In another similar study, Vijayakumar et al. succesfully
properties. 1.5 wt.% of the derived ZnO nanoparticles were prepared KF-Al2O3 nanocatalyst by co-precipitation method
used for the transesterification of the G. gummi-gutta oil by for the transesterification of beef processing industrial
adding it to methanol at 9:1 methanol to oil ratio. The sludge to biodiesel. The transesterification reaction was
reaction lasted for 2 h at 64 °C. Biodiesel yield of 80.1 % supported by ultrasonic irradiation. Characterization of the
was obtained and the cold flow proerties studied comformed nanacatalyst was accomplished using XRD, SEM and FTIR.
with ASTM standard.10 Yield of biodiesel was 97 % was when 6 wt.% loaded
catalyst was used in 1:15 oil to methanol molar ratio for a
reaction time of 3 h. The nanocatalyst recycled seven times
without dimininshing in effeciency. The high effeciency was
attributed to enhanced surface area of the nanocatalyst and
the ultrasonic wave effect as well. Results from the qaulity
test performed on the biodiesel showed that the biodiesel
was within ASTM D6751 standards.5

Bayat et al. also used the co-precipitation method to

prepare an efficient nanocatalyst Fe3O4@Al2O3 which they
used for the transesterification of waste cooking oil to
FAME. The process involved the initial formation of
magnetic suspension containing Fe3O4 nanoparticles which
Figure 1. UV-Visible spectrum of ZnO nanoparticles. is added to aluminium isopropoxide and sonicated for 2 h.
The obtained nanoparticles were washed, dried and
Husin et al. used a slighly different approach by characterized using analytical methods. XRD analysis
synthesizing solid nanocatalyst from fiber bunches of empty showed the standard cubic crystal pattern of Fe3O4
palm oil fruit for the transesterification of palm oil. Empty nanocatalyst, while DLS characterization showed mean
fruit bunch of palm oil was cleaned, dried and burnt to ashes. particle size of 193 nm. The VSM analysis confirmed high
The K2O-riched ash was further calcined at 600 °C saturation magnetization of the catalyst. Analysis of
temperature to produce nanoparticles with enhanced active variance ANOVA showed the temperature and time effect
sites. The nano particles were then characterized using XRD on the reaction exceeded that of methanol to oil ratio. In fact,
and SEM. XRD analysis showed that the catalyst had temperature/time significance exceeded any other
potassium oxide K2O as the highest peak while the size of interaction. Results also showed that the rate constant was
the particle fell in the 150-400 range as indicated by SEM within 0.001 to 0.157 min-1 and activation energy was 55.48
analysis. 97 % of biodiesel yield was obtained when 1% of kJ mol-1 for the transesterification reaction. The reaction was
the catalyst at reaction time and temperature of 3 h and endergonic ∆H = 54.08 kJ mol-1 and nonspontaneous ∆G =
600 °C, respectively. Their findings indicated that the 93.80 kJ mol-1. They recovered the catalyst was heated at
nanocatalyst is cost effective and efficient.11 400 °C and the catalyst was recycled four times without
diminishing efficiency.1

Co-precipitation For the purpose of biodiesel production, from waste

cooking oil, Ashok et al. synthesized nanostructured
Co-precipitation is used to produce highly acidic or basic magnesium oxide (MgO) catalysts using the co-precipitation
catalysts by first preparing two component complex carrier. technique. A precipitate was formed by adding dropwise
The carrier is then impregnated with a strong salt to get a required amount of aqueous sodium hydroxide to an
mesoporous basic nanocatalyst or an organic ester to aqueous mixture containing equal amounts of mangnesium
synthesize basic nanocatalyst. Nanocatalysts prepared using nitrate hexahydrate and 0.1 M of sodium dodecyl sulphate.
this process tend to easily separate from the final product. The formed precipitate was dried and heated at 100, 200,
300, 400 and 500 °C. Ashok et al. characterized the
Co-precipitation method was employed by Gardy et al. to nanocatalyts using XRD, FTIR, UDR and EDX analysis.
synthesize a recyclable mesoporous and efficient solid acid Reaction at 65 °C for 1 h with 2 wt. % amount of MgO
nano-catalyst TiO2/PrSO3H. Initial pretreatment of titanium nanocatalyst with oil to methanol molar ratio of 1:24,
nanoparticles TiO2 NPs was conducted using ammonium yielded 93.3 % of biodiesel. They further determined the
hydroxide to produce a carrier with active receptive sites. fatty acid methyl ester content using GC-MS.13

Eur. Chem. Bull., 2020, 9(6), 148-153 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17628/ecb.2020.9.148-153 150

Advanced nanocatalysts for biodiesel production Section B-Review

A solid nanocatalyst CuO-Mg was prepared by Varghese et The difficulty experienced in core shell production
al. by co-precipitation of copper acetate (5 M) with aqueous demonstrates great potential for use in green biodiesel
NaOH doped with MgCl2. Furthermore, a novel production.15
transesterification model based on the assistance of
ultrasonication was used to synthesize FAME using the
CuO-Mg nanocatalyst. Transesterification at 60 °C for 30
min with 6:1 oil to methanol ratio yielded 71.78 % biodiesel
although total FAME conversion could reach up to 82.83 %.
Visual analysis of the synthsized biodiesel using gas GC-
MS was also performed. Figure 2 shows the GC
chromatogram of FAME and SFO biodiesel produced.14

Figure 3. Synthesis of nano-magnetic catalyst K/ZrO2/γ-Fe2O3.

In another research conducted by Mostafa et al. , the wet

impregnation method was used to prepare different K-La
nanocatalysts supported on zeolite ZSM-5 and tested each to
produce biodiesel from soybean oil. The optimal catalyst
was found to be the one containing 7 wt.%of La loaded with
1 wt.%of K. when they used the catalyst with methanol to
oil molar ratio of 12:1 at 60 °C, yield of FAME reached
90 % in 3h of reaction time. High catalytic activity of K-
Figure 2. GC Chromatogram of FAMEs of SFO biodiesel. La/ZSM nanocatalyst was attributed to high number of basic
sites. The nanocatalyst was characterized using various
analytical methods which include SEM, XRD, TEM, FTIR
Impregnation and N2 adsorption in order to determine its physical and
chemical properties.3
Impregnation is used when preparing doped catalyst by
amalgamating alkali metals with the parent catalyst under
high temperature. For instance, the catalytic strength of CaO
catalyst is enhanced by impregnating alkali metals ions onto
nano CaO catalyst. The CaO solid carrier is first suspended
in water before the precursor (aqueous) is added. Finally, the
combined catalyst is subjected to high temperatures in order
to transform the precursor to its active state. However, care
must be taken not to overheat during calcination as doing so
will result to surface sintering even though high
temperatures favors the formation of crystals (combination
of carrier and active component). The type of alkali ion used
in impregnation determines activity of the doped catalyst. In
most cases, the precursors used are ions of K+, Li+ and Na+.
Figure 4. 1H-NMR spectra of transesterified soybean oil.
Using the impregnation method, Liu et al. prepared a solid
base nano-magnetic catalyst, K/ZrO2/γ-Fe2O3, to synthesize Rafati et al. prepared several type of nanocatalysts (MgO-
biodiesel. ZrOCl2-8H2O was added to a mixture containing NaOH, CaO-NaOH, CaO-KOH, MgO-KOH) by
FeCl2.4H2O and FeCl3.6H2O (in 1:2 mole ratio) and impregnating or loading different strong bases on
subsequently, ammonia 25 wt.%was added to produce a gel- Ca(NO3)2.4H2O. It involveed the addition of a strong base to
sol (Zr(OH)4-Fe(OH)3). The gel-sol was then impregnated Ca(NO3)2.4H2O dissolved in ammonia solution to form
with aqueous solution of KOH to obtain KOH/(Zr(OH)4- precipitates that are further dried at 120 °C and calcined at
Fe(OH)3). Further calcination of the precursor was 400 °C. Rafati et al. tested each nanocatalyst to determine
performed to produce K/ZrO2/γ-Fe2O3 nanocatalyst viewed their level of effectiveness in biodiesel production.
as nano-magnetic catalyst. Figure 3 shows the diagrammatic Electrolysis based transesterification was used to produce
illustration of the nano-magnetic catalyst. XRD, BET, VSM, biodiesel using waste cooking oil. Their findings suggests
TEM, SEM and EDX analysis was used to characterize the high performance of MgO-NaOH nanocatalyst as
catalyst. XRD revealed particle size within 15-25 nm range. demonstrated by biodiesel yield of 94-98 % when oil to
Reaction conditions of 10:1 methanol molar ratio, 5 % methal ratio of 3:5 was used. The quality of the biodiesel
catalyst and 65 °C for 3 h resulted in optimum biodiesel was within ASTM and EN standard. The nanocatalysts were
yield above 93.6 wt%. The catalyst was recycled six times characterized and the XRD, results revealed average mean
without depreciating in strength. crystal size of 66.77 nm.4

Eur. Chem. Bull., 2020, 9(6), 148-153 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17628/ecb.2020.9.148-153 151

Advanced nanocatalysts for biodiesel production Section B-Review

Mixing diesel was compared with conventional diesel oil when

fueled in compression ignition (CI) diesel. Their results
Mixing is the method used to produce catalysts of metal showed close similarity between properties of conventional
oxide mixtures. Significant amount of the active component diesel and that of B20 biodiesel.19
(metals) are mixed with oxides. This produces a favorable
catalyst with smaller area and concentration of basic active Ali et al. .20 prepared a nano magnetic CaO/Fe3O4 catalyst
sites. Often times, impregnation method is ensured to form by chemically mixing 0.003M of calcium nitrate solution
higher active catalysts. For instance, CaO/NiO mixed oxide with 3.5g of Fe3O4. A precipitate was formed by adding 2 M
was first prepared as a carrier before impregnating it with of sodium hydroxide to the mixture and dried at 80 °C.
KF to form an enhanced CaO-KF/NiO-KF nanocatalyst. Finally CaO/Fe3O4 loaded nanocatalyst was formed by
calcination of the dried precipitate at 550 °C for 1 h. The
The mixing method was employed by Hassan et al. . Sol- nanocatalyst was further characterized using FTIR, SEM,
gel samples of CaO-X nanocatalysts were prepared and used XRD and EDX analytical methods. The synthesized catalyst
for the transesterification of palm oil. The Pechini procedure, which was complemented by CaFe2O4 was used in the
whereby dissolved Ca(NO3).4H2O (1.0, 1.5, 2.0 mol) was producing biodiesel. Biodiesel with 69.7% yield was
slowly added to citric acid/deionized water to form a visous synthesized after 300 min of transesterification reaction at
gel, was employed. The gel was further dried and calcined at 65 °C using 10 wt.% of CaO/Fe3O4 nanocatalyst loaded on
850 °C to produce CaO-X nanocatalyst. The prepared methanol in 20:1 methanol/oil molar ratio. The quality of
nanocatalysts were characterized for crystallinity and biodiesel produced was within EN and ASTM standard.20
morphology using NAD analysis and XRD. Using all the
catalysts for the the transesterification process, they
synthesized biodiesel. According to their results, the
incomplete reaction during synthesis of CaO-1.0 formed CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
water on the catalyst surface which lowered its basic
strenght thereby lowering the catalitic activity of the catalyst. Protecting our ecosystem from harmful greenhouse gases
CaO-2.0 was found to be mesoporous with high catalytic is essential hence there is a need to explore advanced
activity. This was demonstrated by formation 81 % FAME methods for producing renewable alternatives. A lot of
within 3 h reaction time.16 progress has been achieved over the years in the use of
nanocatalyst for biodiesel synthesis. This review has
Bharti et al. used sol-gel mixing method to prepare covered methodologies usedwith the goal of improving the
calcium oxide nano catalysts. They used H-NMR, SEM, efficiency of transesterification reactions.
TEM, XRD, FTIR and BET to characterize the nanocatalyst.
Figure 4 shows H-NMR transesterified soybean oil. XRD Characteristics such as high basicity, regeneration and
results showed the particulate size of the catalyst with range reusability in addition to proper preparation and
upto 8 nm, surface area about 67.781 m2 g-1 and pore environmental safety make nanocatalysts suitable for
diameter was 3.302 nm. They used 3.675 wt.% of the biodiesel production. Various investigations covered in this
nanocatalyst in methanol to oil ratio of 11:1 to synthesize review lead to the conclusion that nanocatalyst for biofuel
FAME in 97.61% yield from soybean oil at 60 °C for 2 h production can enhance biodiesel production by far greater
reaction time.17 percentage compared to homogeneous catalyst. The various
types of nanocatalysts used in recent times are metal oxides
The sol-gel mixing and impregnation methods were used (CuO), metal oxide supported by metal oxide (KF-ZnO-
seperately to prepare KF/γ-Al2O3 nanaocatalysts by two Fe3O4) and metal supported on metal oxides (Au-ZnO).
procedures. First, by adding a certain amount of KF-2H2O
and γ-Al2O3 in ethanol to form a clear white gel which was It is recommended for future researchers to put greater
vaporized, dried, milled and calcined at high temperature to emphasis on testing possibility and efficiency of
form KF/γ-Al2O3-OP nanocatalyst and secondly by directly nanocatalyst from biomass source. Experiments using
impregnating KF over commercial γ-Al2O3under equivalent inorganic (metal oxides) and organic (biomass)
conditions devoid of ethanol. The synthesized nanocatalyst nanocatalysts can be undertaken concurrently to examine
was usedfor the tri-component coupling transesterification differences or changes in reaction conditions and biodiesel
of dimethyl carbonate, canola oil and methol. 10.0 wt.%KF yield. We hope that this review will guide future researchers
was loaded and calcinated at 400 °C for the formation of interested in nanocatalyst for biodiesel synthesis.
nano catalyst. They applied 5.0 wt.% of the catalyst to
methanol which was further added to the oil at molar ratio of
dimethyl carbonate (DMC)/oil/methanol of 1:1:8. A reaction
time of 2 h at 65 °C yielded 98.8 % biodiesel. High
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2018, 20(6), 1219–1231, DOI: 10.1007/s10098-018-1547-x Accepted: 26.04.2020.

Eur. Chem. Bull., 2020, 9(6), 148-153 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.17628/ecb.2020.9.148-153 153

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