Sustainable Applications of Coir and Other Coconut By-products by Narendra Reddy

Author:Narendra Reddy
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
ISBN: 9783030210557
Publisher: Springer International Publishing

5.4 Catalysts for Biodiesel

Inexpensive and sulfonated solid acid catalysts were prepared from coir husk by partially carbonizing at 400 °C for 5 h. The carbon formed was mixed with 25% sulfuric acid (H2SO4) for the sulfonation to occur. Catalyst obtained from coir husks had surface area of 61 m2/g, mean pore volume of 14 cm3/g, and mean pore diameter of 2.6 nm (Thushari and Babel 2018). When used as a catalyst for biodiesel production, an increase in yield was observed. About 88.5% yield was obtained using coir husk as catalyst and microwave-assisted biodiesel production.

In another application related to biodiesel, coir fibers were used as a substitute to water to purify biodiesel from excess methanol, unreacted raw materials, or residual catalyst. It was found that the coir fibers could remove soap in concentrations above 3000 ppm, could be used effectively for up to 5 years, did not increase fatty acid levels or add Ca2+ or Mg2+, removed free glycerol and reduced methanol even at high concentrations. Coir fibers also had economical advantage due to their low cost at about $1 per kilogram compared to $6 to $27 for common dry sorbents used for biodiesel purification (Ott et al. 2018).

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