PRODUCTION OF BIODIESEL FROM HYDROSTERIFICATION REACTION

Abstract

Fatty acid esters (Biodiesel) are commonly produced byhomogeneous basic catalytic transesterification reaction, whose sensitivity to the presence of water and free fatty acids (FFAs) in the raw material is one of the main drawbacks. The search for production processes that allow the use of vegetable oils with less added value is of interest to the biofuel industry. A promising alternative is hydroesterification, whose first stage is the hydrolysis of triacylglycerols, producing FFAs and glycerol products. Therefore, instead of decreasing acidity of the raw material through refining, the hydrolysis stage purposely increases its acidity. Then,glycerol is removed and the FFAs are subjected to an esterification reaction to producefatty acid esters and water as a by-product. Therefore, this work presents aliterature review, which has as main focus the production ofbiodiesel from hydroesterification. Alternative raw materials with potential in the current market are also presented. Itwas possible to verify that hydroesterification offers advantages when compared to conventional reactions. Whencarried out underconditions of high temperature and pressure, it can reduce the difficulties associated with the use of catalysts, becoming a promising alternative to be used as a method of biodiesel production.

Keywords

• biodiesel
• esterification
• free fatty acids
• hydrolysis