Integrated Cleaner Biocatalytic Process for Biodiesel Production from Crude Palm Oil Comparing to Refined Palm Oil

From MDPI via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: accepted 2021-06-14, pub-electronic 2021-06-15Publication status: PublishedFunder: Royal Golden Jubilee (RGJ) Ph.D. Programme; Grant(s): PHD/0018/2557Funder: Newton Fund; Grant(s): Newton Fund for Institutional Links 2019/2020An integrated cleaner biocatalyst process was performed for biodiesel production from crude palm oil (CPO) and refined palm oil (RPO). It was evaluated on process efficiency in terms of high purity of biodiesel as well as by-products without purification, less wastewater, less time consuming, and a simple downstream process. A first saponification step was carried out in both f CPO and RPO, a high purity of glycerol (86.25% and 87.5%) was achieved, respectively, while free fatty acids (FFASs) in soap were obtained after hexane extraction. High yields of FFASs were obtained from both CPO and RPO (98.83% and 90.94%). Subsequently, the FFAs were esterified to biodiesel by a biocatalyst of immobilized lipase. The highest biodiesel yields achieved were of 92.14% and 92.58% (CPO and RPO). Remarkably, biodiesel yields obtained from CPO and RPO achieved satisfactory values and the biocatalyst used could be reused for more than 16–17 cycles

Valorization of Aquatic Weed and Agricultural Residues for Innovative Biopolymer Production and Their Biodegradation

From MDPI via Jisc Publications RouterHistory: accepted 2021-08-17, pub-electronic 2021-08-24Publication status: PublishedFunder: National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT); Grant(s): National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT)In this work, water hyacinths, bagasse and rice straw were valorized to produce an innovative biopolymer. Serial steps of extraction, bleaching and conversion of cellulose to be carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) as well as the last steps of blending and molding were performed. The CMC was mixed with tapioca starch solution by a ratio of 9:18, and a plastic sizer of glycerol was varied at 2%, 4% and 6% by volume. In addition, bioplastic sheets were further determined in their properties and biodegradation. The results revealed that bioplastics with 6% glycerol showed a high moisture content of 23% and water solubility was increased by about 47.94% over 24 h. The effect of temperature on bioplastic stability was found in the ranges of 146.28–169.25 °C. Furthermore, bioplastic sheets with 2% glycerol could maintain their shape. Moreover, for texture analysis, the highest elastic texture in the range of 33.74–38.68% with 6% glycerol was used. Moreover, bioplastics were then tested for their biodegradation by landfill method. Under natural conditions, they degraded at about 10.75% by weight over 24 h after burying in 10 cm soil depth. After 144 h, bioplastics were completely decomposed. Successfully, the application of water, weed and agricultural wastes as raw materials to produce innovative bioplastic showed maximum benefits for an environmentally friendly product, which could also be a guideline for an alternative to replace synthetic plastics derived from petroleum

Microbial fuel cells: a green and alternative source for bioenergy production

Microbial fuel cell (MFC) represents one of the green technologies for the production of bioenergy. MFCs using microalgae produce bioenergy by converting solar energy into electrical energy as a function of metabolic and anabolic pathways of the cells. In the MFCs with bacteria, bioenergy is generated as a result of the organic substrate oxidation. MFCs have received high attention from researchers in the last years due to the simplicity of the process, the absence in toxic by-products, and low requirements for the algae growth. Many studies have been conducted on MFC and investigated the factors affecting the MFC performance. In the current chapter, the performance of MFC in producing bioenergy as well as the factors which influence the efficacy of MFCs is discussed. It appears that the main factors affecting MFC’s performance include bacterial and algae species, pH, temperature, salinity, substrate, mechanism of electron transfer in an anodic chamber, electrodes materials, surface area, and electron acceptor in a cathodic chamber. These factors are becoming more influential and might lead to overproduction of bioenergy when they are optimized using response surface methodology (RSM)

Tensile Strength of PHBV/Natural Rubber Latex Mixtures

A polyhydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate (PHBV) is mingled with natural rubber latex (R) to develop its mechanical property of the blend. Normally, substantial effects of the PHBV are hard, fragile, and inelastic, whereas the natural rubber is represented itself as very high elastic matter. The mixtures between the PHBV and natural rubber latex (R) are considered in different proportions. The PHBV solutions (w/v) are defined suitability at 1% (P1), 2% (P2), and 3% (P3). Their liquid mixtures of the PHBV to natural rubber latex (P:R) are fabricated the blended films in three different ratios of 2:3, 1:1 and 3:2, respectively. The PHBV blended films are characterized the crystallinity form by x-ray diffractometry (XRD), which are appeared their identity crystals at 13.30 and 16.68 degree (2θ). Mechanical characterizations of the blends are examined by a universal testing machine (UTM). The average elastic moduli of P1, P2, and P3 mixtures are indicated as 773, 955, and 1,007 kPa, respectively. Their tensile strengths, similarly to elastic moduli, enhance with the PHBV concentrations. The effects of mechanical behaviors and crystallinity reveal that the PHBV blends can be improved their properties by more flexible with natural rubber latex

Biojet Fuel Production from Waste of Palm Oil Mill Effluent through Enzymatic Hydrolysis and Decarboxylation

Palm oil mill effluent (POME), wastewater discharged from the palm oil refinery industry, is classified as an environmental pollutant. In this work, a heterogeneous catalytic process for biojet fuel or green kerosene production was investigated. The enzymatic hydrolysis of POME was firstly performed in order to obtain hydrolysed POME (HPOME) rich in free fatty acid (FFA) content. The variations of the water content (30 to 50), temperature (30 to 60 °C) and agitation speed (150 to 250 rpm) were evaluated. The optimal condition for the POME hydrolysis reaction was obtained at a 50% v/v water content, 40 °C and 200 rpm. The highest FFA yield (Y FA) of 90% was obtained. Subsequently, FFA in HPOME was converted into hydrocarbon fuels via a hydrocracking reaction catalysed by Pd/Al2O3 at 400 °C, 10 bars H2 for 1 h under a high pressure autoclave reactor (HPAR). The refined-biofuel yield (94%) and the biojet selectivity (57.44%) were achieved. In this study, we are the first group to successfully demonstrate the POME waste valorisation towards renewable biojet fuel production based on biochemical and thermochemical routes. The process can be applied for the sustainable management of POME waste. It promises to be a high value-added product parallel to the alleviation of wastewater environmental issues

Batch Fermentation of Salt-Acclimatizing Microalga for Omega-3 Docosahexaenoic Acid Production Using Biodiesel-Derived Crude Glycerol Waste as a Low-Cost Substrate

Biodiesel produced from waste cooking oil (WCO) is on the rise and inevitably leads to issues in managing glycerol waste. Due to the presence of colour, odour and other minor compounds, the refining costs for this type of glycerol are higher and uneconomical. The potential of biodiesel-derived glycerol waste (BDGW) obtained from WCO to produce the highly added product of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), also known as omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid, via the marine microalga of Schizochytrium limacinum ATCC MYA-1381 under aerobic batch fermentation was investigated. Cell growth, as well as DHA production, were performed under various operating conditions, including aeration rates and BDGW concentrations. The effect of the substrate type on cell growth and DHA yield was evaluated. The optimum operating condition was obtained when the air flow of a 0.25 vvm and 50 g/L of the glycerol concentration was fed into the fermenter and maximum cell dry weight (11.40 g/L) and DHA yield (665.52 mg/g) were achieved. However, cell growth and DHA yield were not significantly different when S. limacinum was grown using various carbon sources. Successfully, it clearly demonstrates that the BDGW can be used as a cheap carbon source for DHA production via marine microalgae using aerobic batch fermentation