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To reveal the catalytic potential of abandoned naturally occurring material, we synthesized titania-termite hill composite (Ti-THC) via an incipient wetness impregnation route, characterized by various techniques and tested as a catalyst for transesterification of waste frying oil (WFO). The reusability of the prepared catalyst was also studied to evaluate its stability. The effects of reaction process parameters, such as temperature, time, catalyst loading and methanol/WFO molar ratio on fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) yield, were investigated using a central composite design approach. SEM result revealed pores formation on the catalyst surface, while XRD and EDX analyses confirmed successful insertion of titania into the aluminosilicate layer of the termite hill. The maximum FAME yield of 90.78% was obtained at optimum experimental conditions of 71.16 °C reaction temperature, 2.12 h reaction time, 1.03 wt.% catalyst loading and 9.96:1 methanol/WFO molar ratio. The catalyst still maintained its better stability after being reused for three reaction cycles.

Abstract:Polymer composites by and large found suitable for many specific applications in the field of electrical, electronics, marine, aerospace and microelectronics. Thus a new technique for processing polymer composites has been explored and one such is microwave curing. The roles of microwave in the post curing of polymer matrix composites cannot be under estimated, as it has the capacity to improve the mechanical properties of the composite produced. The aim of the study is to determine the effect of microwave post curing on the tensile property of aluminum reinforced and carbon black reinforced unsaturated polyester composites. This effect was compared with that post cured using conventional oven with the objective of investigating the significance of microwave curing on the tensile strength of the produced composites. A specific study comprising of aluminum filled polyester based composite and carbon black filled polyester based composite were investigated using two different composite curing methods (microwave and conventional thermal heating). The investigation, through experimentation was based on mechanical property (tensile strength) of the produced composites. Comparing the results of the post-curing of the composites using microwave and conventional methods, there is direct relationship between the tensile strength and the percentage weight fraction of the fillers with respect to the post curing methods. 30% aluminum filled, post cured in microwave has 0.01 MPa tensile strength, 20% aluminum filled (microwave) has 0.0076MPa while 30% aluminum filled (conventional oven curing) has 0.0092MPa and 20% aluminum filled (conventional oven curing) has 0.0068MPa.It was concluded that post-curing of the particulate composites through microwave is able to improve the tensile strength better as compared to thermal conventional method.