Biodiesel production by transesterification of soybean oil with ethanol using SBA-15 and Al-SBA-15 catalysts

Abstract

Increasing environmental pollution generated by fossil fuel consumption has intensified the consumption and development of renewable fuels. Thus, the aim of this work was to investigate the use of heterogeneous catalysts (SBA-15 and Al-SBA-15) for the transesterification of soybean oil to produce biodiesel. The pore size and surface acidity of SBA-15 were modified by the addition of heterogeneous Al atoms. Samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Nitrogen adsorption, Scanning electron microscopy, Infrared Spectroscopy, and Thermogravimetry. Results of the characterization study evidenced that a large amount of mesopore and surface acidity can significantly improve the transesterification reaction with the incorporation of aluminum into the SBA-15 framework. The best results were obtained with a 24 h reaction time and Al-SBA-15. The transesterification reaction of soybean oil with ethanol during 24 h showed in this work presented an efficient conversion of 85.5% with SBA-15 catalyst and 96.5% with the Al-SBA-15 catalyst.