Exploring the Prospects of Different Activated Charcoal Systems as Low-Cost Materials for Upgrading Groundnut Oil into Biodiesel

Abstract

The escalations in fuel consumption associated with rapid growth in human population and industrialization has accounted for consistent interest in search for alternative fuel sources. Valorization of biomass feedstock for fuels and chemicals production is one of those approaches given priority. In line with this global perspective, the current study investigated the prospects of different modified charcoal catalysts (i.e. H-C, Na-C and Cr – C) for biodiesel production from groundnut oil. One important noticeable feature was the possible creation of adequate surface for reactants adsorption-desorption over the developed catalysts. Specifically, the catalyst H-C formed from H₂SO₄ modification of charcoal was very active and yielded up to 95.70% methyl esters (i.e. biodiesel) and was stable for several reaction cycles. The overall activity of the catalysts followed the trend H-C> Na-C> Cr – C. Similarly, the produced biodiesel exhibited properties that were in good agreement with those reported in international databases for fuel specifications.