Application of ultrasound technology in the intensification of biodiesel production from bitter almond oil (BAO) in the presence of biocompatible heterogeneous catalyst synthesized from camel bone

ABSTRACT

Although biofuels have many benefits, but their production costs are high. This challenge has caused researches to use waste materials and apply technologies to lower the cost of producing these fuels. In this study, a biocompatible heterogeneous catalyst created from calcining camel bones is employed to make biodiesel fuel from non-edible bitter almond oil (BAO). Additionally, using ultrasound technology was one way to increase the effectiveness of the biodiesel synthesis process. Additionally, the effects of the independent variables alcohol to oil molar ratio (6:1, 11:1, and 16:1), reaction time (10, 20, and 30 minutes), ultrasonic power (30, 65, and 100%), catalyst loading (4, 8, and 12 oil wt%), and reaction time (10, 20, and 30 minutes) on the production of methyl ester from BAO were examined. Camel bones were calcined at 400, 700, and 1000°C for 2, 3, and 4 hours. Optimum temperature and time conditions for camel bones calcination with maximum methyl ester production of 88% were obtained at 1000°C and 3 hours after measuring the morphology structure of camel bones catalyst using XRD and TGA methods. The maximum biodiesel conversion rate of 92.3% was obtained using the calcined catalyst with a molar ratio of 11:1, a catalyst loading of 8%, an ultrasonic power of 100%, and a reaction time of 20 minutes. Using the response surface methodology, tests and optimization were performed by Design-Expert software. Biodiesel yield and energy consumption were 88.13% and 248.18 kJ in the optimal conditions suggested by the software with the conditions of maximum production and minimum energy consumption with appropriate weighting. According to the results, waste camel bone can be used as a cost-effective biocompatible source with favorable catalytic activity for biodiesel fuel production.

KEYWORDS:

• Biodiesel
• calcination
• camel bone
• ultrasound
• bitter almond oil (BAO)

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ali Rahimi

Ali Rahimi was born and raised in Birjand, Iran. He received a Bsc degree in Farm Machinery Engineering from Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman. He obtained his Master's degrees from Tarbiat Modares University (TMU) in Tehran, in 2014. He is currently pursuing the PhD degree in ferdowsi university of mashhad. His research interests include in the synthesis and application of biofuels, particularly in the production of biodiesel using process intensification methods.

Mohammad Hossein Aghkhani

Mohammad Hossein Aghkhani is a Full Professor who currently works at the Department of Biosystems Engineering, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad. He received a PhD degree in Mechanics of Farm Machinery Engineering from Tarbiat Modares University (TMU) in Tehran. His field of research includes a range of topics with focus on biofuels and Design of agricultural machines. He teaches different courses at undergraduate and graduate levels and has published more than 30 peer-reviewed papers in high-ranked journals.

Mahdi Hedayatizadeh

Mahdi Hedayatizadeh is an Assistant Professor at University of Birjand. He received a Bsc degree in Farm Machinery Engineering from Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Msc degree in Mechanics of Farm Machinery Engineering from University of Tehran and a PhD degree in Agricultural Mechanization (Field of Renewable Energies) from University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran. He is highly interested in biofuels and solar energy applications such as solar dryers, solar stills etc. and being able to publish different papers in highly-prestigious journals with h-index of 8.

Ebrahim Fayyazi

Ebrahim Fayyazi was born and raised in Ahvaz, Iran. He obtained his Master's and PhD degrees from Tarbiat Modares University (TMU) in Tehran, where he specialized in the synthesis and application of biofuels, particularly in the production of biodiesel using process intensification methods. Fayyazi has contributed significantly to the field of biofuels, publishing more than 25 peer-reviewed articles in renowned journals, with an h-index of 12. After completing his 2-years postdoctoral fellowship at the Renewable Energies Institute at TMU, Fayyazi went on to work as a researcher at Irankhodro Powertrain Company (IPCO) in Tehran, Iran. In this role, he applied his expertise in biofuels to develop sustainable solutions for powertrain systems.