Date

4-2009

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering

College

College of Engineering and Agro-Industrial Technology (CEAT)

Adviser/Committee Chair

Rex B. Demafelis

Co-adviser

Laura J. Pham

Committee Member

Butch G. Battaler, Myra G. Borines,

Abstract

The optimization of the production of ethyl ester using potassium hydroxide was conducted using the Response Surface Methodology. The factors considered were the reaction temperature of 29°C to 36°C, ethanol to oil ratio of seven to eight, potassium hydroxide to oil molar ratio of 0.90 to 0.32, and reaction time of three to four hours. The responses considered in the optimization of ethyl ester production were the conversion of oil to ethyl and its purity. The matrix of the optimization experiment was generated using the Design Expert 7.14. It was found that two-factor interaction and quadratic model were the models fitted for the purity and conversion of oil to ethyl ester, respectively. The optimum point predicted and verified experimentally which has the conditions of 7.86EtOH:oil molar ratio and 0.28KOH:oil molar ratio, 29.61°C reaction temperature and 3.05 hours reaction time, produced an ethyl ester with a purity of 907.6% and as high as 90.31% conversion. A time profile of the transesterification at the obtained optimum conditions was also performed to determine the kinetics of the reaction. The overall forward order of reaction evaluated was 1.108 with a constant rate of formation of ethyl ester of 0.10443 (wt% triglyceride)⁻⁰⁻¹⁰⁸min⁻¹.

Language

English

LC Subject

Jatropha, Biodiesel

Call Number

LG 993 2009 E62 L35

Document Type

Thesis

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