Sujeet Kesharvani¹, Sakhi Katre¹, Suyasha Pandey¹, Gaurav Dwivedi^1,*, Tikendra Nath Verma², Prashant Baredar¹

Energy Engineering, Vol.121, No.9, pp. 2363-2388, 2024, DOI:10.32604/ee.2024.052523

Abstract This study delves into biodiesel synthesis from non-edible oils and algae oil sources using Response Surface Methodology (RSM) and an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model to optimize biodiesel yield. Blend of C. vulgaris and Karanja oils is utilized, aiming to reduce free fatty acid content to 1% through single-step transesterification. Optimization reveals peak biodiesel yield conditions: 1% catalyst quantity, 91.47 min reaction time, 56.86°C reaction temperature, and 8.46:1 methanol to oil molar ratio. The ANN model outperforms RSM in yield prediction accuracy. Environmental impact assessment yields an E-factor of 0.0251 at maximum yield, indicating responsible production… More >

Hongze Gang^1,2, Qiqi Zhang¹, Wei Wang¹, Bangxin Cai¹, Jinfeng Liu^1,2, Shizhong Yang^1,2, Bozhong Mu^1,2,*

Journal of Renewable Materials, Vol.8, No.4, pp. 417-429, 2020, DOI:10.32604/jrm.2020.09201

Abstract Waste cooking oils and non-edible vegetable oils are abundant and renewable resources for bio-based materials which have showed great potential applications in many industries. In this study, five fatty acids commonly found in non-edible vegetable oils, including palmitic acid, stearic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, ricinoleic acid, and their mixtures, were used to produce bio-based zwitterionic surfactants through a facile and high-yield chemical modification. These surfactants demonstrated excellent surface/interfacial properties with the minimum surface tensions ranging from 28.4 mN/m to 32.8 mN/m in aqueous solutions. The interfacial tensions between crude oil and surfactant solutions were… More >