Kinetic and effective production of DMC-Sm-BioDs from Sapindus mukorossi seed kernel powder using dimethyl carbonate with KOH–Folch mixture solution as a catalyst

Abstract

The kinetics and transesterification of Sapindus mukorossi seed kernel powder with dimethyl carbonate (DMC) were explored using a mixed KOH–Folch solution as a catalyst for the preparation of biodiesel. The effect of the reaction conditions (the molar ratio of S. mukorossi seed kernel powder with DMC, the catalyst amount and the reaction time, the reaction temperature and the agitation speed) on DMC-Sm-BioDs yields were investigated. The highest DMC-Sm-BioDs yield was 95% at 60 °C for 60 min with a molar ratio of S. mukorossi seed kernel powder to DMC 1:3 and 1.5% KOH (based on DMC weight). DMC-Sm-BioDs was analyzed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to identify the fatty acid dimethyl esters. The activation energy (E_a) was 75.2 kJ mol⁻¹, and the pre-exponential factor was 1.09×10⁸ min⁻¹. The DMC-Sm-BioDs produced from S. mukorossi seed kernel powder is characterized for various properties, such as the kinematic viscosity at 40 °C, the specific gravity at 25 °C, the flash point, the pour point, the cloud point, the acid value and the copper stripe corrosion. DMC-Sm-BioDs satisfied the European quality standards defined in ASTM D6751-02.

Keywords:

• Sapindus mukorossi seed kernel powder
• dimethyl carbonate
• KOH–Folch mixture solution
• DMC-Sm-BioDs