Tuesday, May 3, 2011
The search for new energy sources and alternative fuels, as the biodiesel, is driven by the recognition that fossil fuels derived from petroleum shall face increased restrictions in the future, because of environment concerns and potentially disastrous effect of climatic changes predicted due to greenhouse gas emissions. This work is concerned with the study of biodiesel production. The transesterification activity of free lipase from Thermomyces lanuginosus in the reaction of vinyl acetate and 2-phenetyl alcohol was determined by HPLC, measuring the product 2-phenetyl acetate, giving a relatively high value of 1422 U per g of enzyme, at 37oC. Then, the enzyme was used for producing biodiesel from different oils and ethanol. Using Moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam), soybean or fodder radish (Raphanus sativus) oil and ethanol at 1:7.5 molar ratio, 40 ºC, reaction time of 48 h, and 10% (based on the wt of the reaction media) of lipase, the biodiesel yield was 78.4%, 60.1% and 43.3%, respectively. These results indicate the potential for developing the processes for producing biodiesel from these chosen oils and enzyme.