Investigating the Effects of Some Operating Parameters Affecting Biodiesel Production from Used Vegetable Oil

Currently, the main source of energy used all over the world are fossil fuels. Due to their non-renewable nature as well as the environmental problems caused by their use, the need for an alternative energy source is felt. Biodiesel is a biodegradable, non-toxic and environmentally friendly substance. This substance is produced from vegetable oils and animal fats in different ways. Using the Transesterification method to produce biodiesel has advantages such as low cost, high reaction speed and better quality than other methods. In this research, the effect of factors such as temperature, stirring speed, methanol-to-oil ratio, and catalyst weight percentage on biodiesel production was investigated with the help of experimental design using Minitab software version 19. The quality of the produced product was compared with international standards by measuring some of its characteristics. The esterification reaction was carried out by methanol in the presence of sodium hydroxide catalyst. Based on the “Placket Burman” design (PBD), the influencing factors including the ratio of methanol to oil and the weight percentage of the catalyst were identified. Considering that the temperature and stirring speed do not have much effect on the process, there is no need to adjust the process temperature to reduce the production cost, and the mixing speed can be used with less energy consumption.