Production of Biodiesel by Enzymatic Transesterification: Using Waste Cooking Oil as Feedstock and Candida Antarctica Lipase B as Biocatalyst.
Production of Biodiesel by Enzymatic Transesterification: using Waste Cooking Oil as feedstock and Candida Antarctica Lipase B as Biocatalyst.
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTON
The high cost of bio-diesel, compared to petroleum-based diesel, is a major barrier to its commercialization. It has been reported that 60-90% of bio-diesel cost arises from the cost of the feedstock oil (C.C. Lai et al., 2005). Studies showed the potential of waste-cooking oil (WCO) as a material for biodiesel production (Sulaiman Al-Zuhair, 2008). Therefore, the use of WCO should greatly reduce the cost of bio-diesel. In addition to the choice of lipase employed, factors which make the transesterification process feasible and ready for commercialization are: enzyme modification, the selection of feedstock and alcohol, use of common solvents, pretreatment of the lipase , alcohol to oil molar ratio, water activity/content and reaction temperature. Optimization of these parameters is necessary in order to reduce the cost of biodiesel production. Use of no/low cost waste materials such as the WCO will have double environmental benefits by reducing the environmental pollution potential of the wastes and producing an environmentally friendly fuel. In addition, production of bio-diesel from WCO is considered an important step in reducing and recycling waste. A fresh vegetable oil and its waste differ significantly in water and free fatty acids (FFAs) contents, which are around 2000 ppm and 10-15%, respectively (C.C. Lai et al., 2005; Y. Zhang et al., 2003). Because of this the traditional alkaline-catalyzed biodiesel production is unsuitable (Zhang et al., 2003). The use of the enzyme lipase as a biocatalyst for the transesterification reaction step in biodiesel production has been extensively investigated. Lipase is produced by all living organisms and can be used intracellularly or extracellularly. In order to design an economically and environmentally sustainable biodiesel production
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTON
The high cost of bio-diesel, compared to petroleum-based diesel, is a major barrier to its commercialization. It has been reported that 60-90% of bio-diesel cost arises from the cost of the feedstock oil (C.C. Lai et al., 2005). Studies showed the potential of waste-cooking oil (WCO) as a material for biodiesel production (Sulaiman Al-Zuhair, 2008). Therefore, the use of WCO should greatly reduce the cost of bio-diesel. In addition to the choice of lipase employed, factors which make the transesterification process feasible and ready for commercialization are: enzyme modification, the selection of feedstock and alcohol, use of common solvents, pretreatment of the lipase , alcohol to oil molar ratio, water activity/content and reaction temperature. Optimization of these parameters is necessary in order to reduce the cost of biodiesel production. Use of no/low cost waste materials such as the WCO will have double environmental benefits by reducing the environmental pollution potential of the wastes and producing an environmentally friendly fuel. In addition, production of bio-diesel from WCO is considered an important step in reducing and recycling waste. A fresh vegetable oil and its waste differ significantly in water and free fatty acids (FFAs) contents, which are around 2000 ppm and 10-15%, respectively (C.C. Lai et al., 2005; Y. Zhang et al., 2003). Because of this the traditional alkaline-catalyzed biodiesel production is unsuitable (Zhang et al., 2003). The use of the enzyme lipase as a biocatalyst for the transesterification reaction step in biodiesel production has been extensively investigated. Lipase is produced by all living organisms and can be used intracellularly or extracellularly. In order to design an economically and environmentally sustainable biodiesel production