Synthesis of Biodiesel as Green Fuel from waste “Date seeds” oil

Depletion of fossil fuel sources and environmental issues due to greenhouse gases has led the world to search for alternative sources. Synthesizing the green fuel from non-edible feedstocks without disturbing the food chain is becoming essential. Date palm is one of mankind’s oldest cultivated plants, and is widely cultivated in the Arabian Peninsula with estimated production of about 2.34 × 10⁶ metric ton per year, 23% of which is considered as a residue (500,000 metric tons) which represent an economic and environmental burden. Such cheap and abundant by-products can be utilized as a source for biodiesel production. The non-edible Date seeds oil was found to contain 54.85% unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) whereas the level of saturated fatty acid (SFA) was 45.14%. The fuel properties of biodiesel synthesized from Date seeds oil such as acid value (0.21 mg KOH.g^-1), cetane number (58.23), density (0.82 g.cm^-3), calorific value (44.10 MJ.kg^-1), and flash point (137 °C) were determined and compared with international (ASTM 6751) and European (EN 14214) standards. The viscosity of the produced biodiesel decreased from 12.61 mm².s^-1 to 3.69 mm².s^-1 with increasing temperature from 0ºC to 50ºC. Cold flow behavior of biodiesel was evaluated by DSC, which revealed that it can be efficiently used in colder region as transportation fuel. FTIR spectra reveals the presence of methyl esters and confirmed the complete formation of FAME (fatty acid methyl ester). The fuel properties of biodiesel obtained from Date seeds oil, after comparison with standards, showed its potential for biodiesel production.