SAFFLOWER OIL METHYL ESTER: OPTIMIZATION OF TRANSESTERIFICATION PROCESS AND FUEL CHARACTERIZATION FOR C.I. ENGINE PERFORMANCE

Abstract

In the present work, the production of biodiesel using safflower oil (SO) in an alkaline catalyzed transesterification reaction was investigated. The effect of different parameters including methanol to oil molar ratio (4:1, 6:1), potassium hydroxide concentration (0.5 %, 1.0%, 1.5 %) and reaction time (60 min, 75 min, 90 min) on the production of biodiesel were investigated. The result indicated that these parameters were important factor affecting the transesterification reaction. The fuel properties of biodiesel including viscosity were measured. The methyl ester production methodology is prime aspect for efficient and cost-effective production of methyl ester. The present investigation concentrated on the distinct technical aspects of methyl ester production methodology. As per consideration of maximum biodiesel yield and minimum viscosity, the optimized biodiesel yield and viscosity were evaluated as 95.22% and 5.63 centipoise respectively as per optimized process parameters. The properties of SOME were found to be close to that of diesel fuel and also they satisfied the ASTM standards.