Feedstocks for biodiesel

Although continuous production plants can achieve higher biodiesel throughputs and are less costly to operate per biodiesel unit, batch plants are less expensive to build and can more easily be adapted to changing raw materials and reaction conditions. This flexibility is particularly important given the economic impetus to use diverse TG feedstocks for biodiesel production. Nevertheless, the current trend is toward the construction of continuous production plants given their higher production capacity and lower operational cost, in accordance with current biodiesel demand. 

Figure 6.3. Types of feedstock for biodiesel production. Source Chemical Economics Handbook (SRI Consulting), November 2006.

As animal fats are a potential feedstock for biodiesel production, Cummins et al. (142) assessed the danger of a human contracting CJD as a result of the use of tallow as a fuel in diesel engines. They concluded that the risk was several orders of magnitude less than the rate of spontaneous appearance of CJD. Thus, scientific analysis indicates that processed (i.e., rendered) animal fat is not an agent of transmission of BSE. Nonetheless, especially in the United Kingdom, the public remains skeptical. This has in some cases led to less use of animal fats in feed applications. Especially in the United Kingdom, the BSE epidemic has reduced the amount of domestically available tallow (because of condemnation) and increased the use of other lipids in place of animal fats. 

In most parts of the world, the term biodiesel now denotes a diesel fuel that is produced by converting a vegetable oil to methyl (or ethyl) esters. In the United States soybean oil has been the primary feedstock for biodiesel, mainly becase it is commonly the least expensive and most abundant vegetable oil. Although there are economic reasons why corn oil (and other U.S. vegetable oils) has not been used as feedstocks for biodiesel, there are no technical reasons why a corn oil biodiesel could not be successfully developed (personal communication. M. Haas). 

The worldwide consumption of soybean oil was 37.9 million tons in 2008, accounting for 28% of global vegetable oil usage [1]. It finds its way into several food appHcations such as cooking oils, salad oils, or margarines. Technical uses include additives for coatings. In the biofuels industries of the United States and Brazil, soybean oil is also the main feedstock for biodiesel production (almost 20% of soybean oil went into biodiesel in the United States in 2008 [7]). 

Li JB, Gellerstedt G, Toven K (2009) Steam explosion lignins their extraction, structure and potential as feedstock for biodiesel and chemicals. Bioresour Technol 100 2556... 

Taher, H., S. Al-Zuhair, A. Al-Marzouqui, and I. Hashim. 2011. Extracted Fat from Lamb Meat by Supercritical CO2 as Feedstock for Biodiesel Production. Biochemical Engineering Journal 55 (1) 23-31. 

Research Using Homogeneous Chemical Catalyzed Transesterification of Different Feedstocks for Biodiesel Production... 

Navarro-Diaz, H. J., S. L. Gonzalez, B. Irigaray, 1. Vieitez, 1. Jachmanian, H. Hense, and J. V. Oliveira. 2014. Macauba Oil as an Alternative Feedstock for Biodiesel Characterization and Ester Conversion by the Supercritical Method. Paper presented at III Iberoamerican Conference on Supercritical Fluids—PROSCIBA 2013, Cartagena,... 

As well as foodstuffs, coconut oil can be used as a feedstock for biodiesel fuel. Various tropical island countries are using coconut oil as a fuel source to power trucks, automobiles, and buses, and for electrical generators. Before electrical lighting became commonplace, coconut oil was used for lighting in India, and was exported under the name cochin oil. Coconut oil can be used as a skin moisturizer, as an engine lubricant and a transformer oil, and acids derived from coconut oil can be used as a herbicide. Coconut oil is used by movie theater chains to pop popcorn ... 

Canadian mnstard seed prodnction has been ranging from 105,0001 in 2001-2002 to 306,0001 in 2004-2005. In 2006, the total world mustard exports were 315,0001, 55% of which were Canadian mustard. In 2006-2007, Saskatchewan dominated Canadian mustard seed production, with 78% of total production. The area seeded for mustard in 2006 in Saskatchewan was 280,000 acres, which yielded 776 pounds per acre (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 2007). These data show that mustard seeds are available in large quantity in Canada. Because it contains a high level of erucic acid, mustard oil does not meet Canadian spedlications for edible purpose, but it could be utilized for other purposes such as feedstock for biodiesel production. 

In recent years, production of biodiesel has expanded in both the European Union and the United States. In2006, European countries prodnced approximately 5.6bilUon liters of biodiesel compared with 0.86biUion liters produced in the United States (Durret et al., 2008). The future development of biodiesel in Europe is mainly driven by the Renewable Energy Directive, which has a binding target of 10% biofuels in the transport sector until 2020. The main feedstock for biodiesel in Europe is still rapeseed oil, with a share of approximately 70% 13% is covered by soybean oil, and almost 7% comes from waste frying oil and animal fat (Mittelbach, 2010). Soybean oil is the primary source of biodiesel production in the United States (Karmakar et al., 2010). 

Karmakar, A., Karmakar, S., Mukherjee, S., 2010. Properties of various plants and animals feedstocks for biodiesel production. Bioresour. Technol. 101, 7201-7210. 

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is believed to be indigenous to West Africa. More than 80% of the world s palm oil comes from Southeast Asia, mainly Malaysia (50%) and Indonesia. Another species, such as American oil palm (Elaeis oleifera), are also cultivated for vegetable oil. One hectare of oil palm plantation produces 4.51 of oil per year which is three times the yield of coconut and more than 10 times that of soybean. Oil palms accumulate 90% of their oil in the mesocarp of fruits (pahn oil contains mostly palmitic and oleic acid, together 80% 10% LA), and the remaining comes from seed kernels (they contain >60% of medium-chain FAs, mainly, lauric acid). Pahn oil is mostly used in food products, as well as an oleochemical feedstock and a feedstock for biodiesel production. Pahn kernel oil is a most important feedstock used in the production of detergents and other applications of medium-chain FAs. 

Pinzi, S., Leiva-Candia, D., et al., 2014. Latest trends in feedstocks for biodiesel production. Biofuels Bioproducts Biorefining-Biofpr 8 (1), 126—143. 

Currently, the main raw materials used to produce biodiesel are the vegetable oils extracted from oleaginous plants. The cost of these materials currentiy represents about 70% of the total production costs. This means that the most suitable vegetable oils are those from crops with the highest productivity per hectare or low-cost oils such as waste oils. These days, the high fossil fuel prices, the collapse of food for biodiesel initiatives, and concerns about increased levels of CO2 emissions in the atmosphere have all created awareness of the need for alternative fuel solutions. Microalgae have optimistically emerged as one of the potential lowest-cost feedstocks for biodiesel production (Robles-Medina et al., 2009). 

Feedstock contributes for a major portion of biodiesel production cost. Currently, edible oils are mostly used as feedstock for biodiesel production. Edible and nonedible... 

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