Production of High Cetane Number Biodiesel from Jatropha Curcas L. Seed Oil: Improvement of Physicochemical Characteristics
Finding out how the trans-esterification process influences the chemical make-up and fuel quality of biodiesel made from Jatropha curcas L. seed oil is the main objective of this work. The extracted Jatropha oil was characterized by GC-MS and ICP technique and American Oil Chemist Society standards were used to study its physicochemical properties. Due to the fact that every physicochemical property does not meet WHO specifications, it has been determined to be non-edible oil; these findings demonstrate that the high oil content (30 %) and free fatty acid composition of Jatropha seed oil make it a potential source for biodiesel synthesis. By varying the quantities of CH4OH and NaOH, as well as the temperature and reaction duration, the optimum reaction for biodiesel production using this approach has been studied. GC/MS was used to confirm the biodiesel's identity. The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) requirements were used to establish the physicochemical properties of biodiesel samples (MJ1-MJ15), and it was discovered that they were within the acceptable ranges required for the operation of diesel engines except for ash, water content, and cetane number for MJ1 and MJ15 biodiesel sample. Treatment of the biodiesel with anhydrous sodium sulphate improves the physicochemical properties of all samples; it brought all qualities into compliance for application in engines powered by diesel. By optimizing the conditions of transestrification, a high-quality biodiesel (cetane number = 61.8) has been synthesized with the highest fatty acids methyl ester content, which has recorded for the MJ6 biodiesel.