Characterization of Blend Properties of Castor Biodiesel and Bioethanol

Abstract

Some important properties of biodiesel such as viscosity, melting point, thermal stability, and cetane index can be directly related to the chemical composition of the biomass source used. However, the viscosity of castor oil ethyl ester (COEE) is about four times greater than the biodiesel viscosity specification, and this fact restricts the uses of this biofuel. The main goal of this work is to investigate the physical–chemical properties of COEE in ethanol blends and present an option to decrease the castor oil biodiesel viscosity specification. COEE viscosity is 14.413 mm2/s. The results show an evident decrease in biodiesel viscosity with the addition of ethanol. Samples with 30, 40, and 50 vol % of ethanol present the following viscosities 5.316, 4.044, and 3.136 mm2/s, respectively. These results are in agreement with Brazilian National Agency of Petroleum, Natural gas and Biodiesel (ANP), and European (EN 14214) specifications. Three correlations that describe the decrease in viscosity and density with ethanol concentration, and the variation of viscosity with the density in COEE ethanol blends were obtained. The behavior of COEE ethanol blends with diesel also were analyzed. The increase in solubility of ethanol in commercial diesel was verified because COEE acts as a cosolvent in an ethanol–diesel mixture.

Biofuel Production with Castor Bean: A Win–Win Strategy for Marginal Land

“…Castor bean biodiesel requires a negligible amount of catalyst to give a high biodiesel yield, reducing the production cost for large-scale operations [22,150]. Furthermore, castor bean biodiesel can be obtained at low temperatures [110,151]: for instance, Keera et al [143] produced castor bean biodiesel through alkaline transesterification, with biodiesel yield obtained at 30 • C similar to that obtained at 60 • C. It is highly soluble in alcohol, due to the presence of hydroxyl groups, with great advantage during transesterification [80,144,151,152]. A study by Bateni et al [110] demonstrated that the whole castor bean plant may be used in biodiesel production, with transesterification performed with ethanol obtained by saccharification and fermentation of plant residues; 1 kg of castor bean plant produced 149 g of biodiesel and 30.1 g of ethanol.…”

“…All the above-mentioned studies indicate that castor bean is a great feedstock for biodiesel production. Applying a mathematical experimental design and methodology, such as response surface methodology [151,154] or the Taguchi approach [155,156], can improve and optimize castor bean oil transesterification. New technological innovations, new diesel engines, and mathematical model applications could greatly increase castor bean biodiesel production and utilization.…”

Hidrolisado hemicelulósico

“…Identificação dos solventes empregado no processo de extração líquido-líquido e das respectivas purezas, marcas e massas molares. (Silva et al, 2006(Silva et al, , 2013.…”