Kajian proses produksi biodiesel melalui transesterifikasi in situ biji jarak pagar (jatropha curcas l.) pada skala pilot

Abstract

At present, energy demands have been steadily increasing along with growth of human population and industrialization. Common sources of energy are fossil-based fuels. This growing consumption of energy has rapidly depleted non-renewable sources of energy. The increasing cost and depletion of fossil fuels have motivated researchers to find an alternative source of renewable energy. Moreover, there are many disadvantages of fossil-based fuels, such as atmospheric pollution and environmental issues. Biodiesel (fatty acids methyl esters, FAME) is a promising alternative fuel to replace petroleum-based diesel that is obtained from renewable sources as vegetable oil, animal fat, and waste cooking oil. Vegetable oil are more suitable source for biodiesel production compared to animal fat and waste cooking since they are renewable in nature. Jatropha curcas L. (JCL) is an acceptable choice for biodiesel production because it is non-edible and can be easily grown. Conventional production of biodiesel from Jatropha seeds involve two main processing steps : oil extraction and transesterification to FAME. In this study, feasibility in situ transesterification of Jatropha seeds was investigated on pilot plant. It was found that methanol/hexane/seed ratio effected the yield significantly. With the following reaction conditions: reaction periode 6 hours, 600 rpm stiring speed, 400C reaction temperature, methanol/hexane/seed ratio 3:3:1, and 7 wt% of KOH, the biodiesel yield can reached 89.19%. This single step of in situ alkaline transesterification process therefore can be a potential route for biodiesel production that reduces processing steps and cost.