Transesterified Citrullus lanatus (watermelon) Seeds oil as Biodiesel: Preparation and Characterization

Abstract

This work studied the two-step method for the production, characterization and determination of alkyl ester composition of Citrullus lanatus seed oil. The seed contained 44.5—46% crude lipid. The oil contained high amount of free fatty (FFA’s) acids (9.14%) with (18.28 mgKOHg^-1) acid number. The high FFA’s content of the oil necessitates pretreatment (esterification, using H₂SO₄ catalyst) before alkali catalyzed transesterification using sodium hydroxide. The methyl esters produced were analyzed for physicochemical and fuel property tests. Fatty acid methyl ester composition were determined using GC—MS. Some important fuel parameters which include; viscosity, cloud point, flash point, diesel index, acid number and glycerol level determined; fall within the acceptable limits of ASTM standard specifications. The most abundant fatty acid in watermelon seed oil is linoleic (46.32%), then oleic (16.58%), palmitic (10.75%) and stearic (7.95%) acids. The results indicates that, citrullus lanatus seed oil possess qualities that qualifies it for use as biodiesel feedstock.