The Production of Biodiesel Monitored With Real-Time Laser Spectroscopy. Confirmation of the Technique With Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance

Abstract

Biodiesel is a synthetic fuel usually produced by the transesterification reaction. This study was undertaken in order to monitor the kinetics of the transesterification reaction between soybean oil and methanol catalyzed by KOH and determine when the reaction reached chemical equilibrium. A series of reactions was monitored with a laser spectrometer used to analyze the absorption and scattering of light in real-time. The monitoring system combined the information received through multiple sensors. The correlation of the present technique with 1H-NMR spectra confirmed that the reaction was approaching chemical equilibrium when the monitoring curve showed asymptotic behavior.