Fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) production from sludge solid waste as K2O/SiO2 catalyst

The demand for primary energy sources such as oil continues to increase in line with population growth and technological advancements. The use of biodiesel as an alternative fuel has been widely considered to replace fossil fuels, which are expected to be depleted. The purpose of this research is to produce Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) using a K2O/SiO2 catalyst. The production of fatty acid methyl ester from palm oil has been carried out through a transesterification reaction of solid sludge waste from using an impregnation method with KOH to produce the K2O/SiO2 catalyst. The calcined sludge solid waste contains >50 % SiO2 compound as the main component and has successfully catalyzed the transesterification of palm oil to of fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) at 60 °C. The composition of K2O/SiO2 catalyst after impregnation where K2O is the dominant compound with 61.6 % content followed by SiO2 content of 21.5 % and Fe2O3 of 14.3 % and can be used as a catalyst in the transesterification process. The effect of catalyst weight, molar ratio of palm oil and methanol, will be investigated on FAME conversion and yield. The highest FAME conversion was 99.23 % with 5 wt% catalyst weight, palm oil to methanol molar ratio 1:15, reaction time 120 minutes. The increase of FAME yield can reduce the diffusion between the three-phase system (methanol-oil-catalyst). Then the silica catalyst mixed with KOH derived from sludge solid waste is concluded to be environmentally friendly and efficient for biodiesel production.