Avaliação do uso de catalisador zeolítico ácido na produção de biodiesel

Abstract

The use of acid catalysts for biodiesel is an alternative to conventional catalysts. Despite being slower, can transesterified triglycerides and produce esterification of free fatty acids and suffer little influence of water, which may be present in the raw material. This work aimed to evaluate the use of zeolite catalyst with acid characteristics, such as heterogeneous catalyst in the transesterification of soybean oil with anhydrous ethanol, in order to produce ethyl esters (biodiesel). Tests were conducted to assess the influence of different process parameters such as the proportions of catalyst (0.25, 0.5, 1, 2 4 6 8% p / p for the quantity of soybean oil used) and variations temperatures (60, 80, 100 and 110 oC). Was used as a method of evaluating the efficiency of the reaction the viscosity of the final product, purified, and the ester content in the samples, there was also a test to reduce acidity, using the oleic acid. It was found, with all tests, the zeolite catalyst has not proved effective in the reaction of alcoholysis of soybean oil, which was observed for all parameters studied, there was not converting well, according to the norms of standard quality of biodiesel produced. There was also that for the reaction of esterification of fatty acid the catalyst did not achieve good results, reducing the acidity in only 25%.