Use of Ultrasound in Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Crambe Oil Using Lipase Lecitase Ultra ( <i>Phospholipase</i> A1)

ABSTRACT Biodiesel is an alternative fuel to petroleum diesel, made from renewable sources, with hydroesterification being one of the production routes, consisting of a hydrolysis step followed by esterification. Therefore, this work investigated the enzymatic hydrolysis reaction of crambe oil, aiming at the production of free fatty acids, using the lipase Lecitase Ultra ( Phospholipase A1), in a reactor operating in batch mode with orbital agitation and also in a reaction with ultrasonic cavitation by the probe, using DCCR to study the effects of the variables temperature (T), water: oil fraction (W:O), and enzyme: substrate fraction (E:S, where S is the total mass of water and oil). The results of the ultrasound planning indicate that the optimal conditions were reached within the limits studied. After 4 h of reaction, the ultrasound probe obtained a fatty acid yield of 57.7% at 40°C, while, for the orbital shaker, the yield was 65.36% in 12 h of reaction at 50°C. A simplified kinetic mathematical model made under the optimal reaction condition was used to describe the reaction kinetics. The use of ultrasound, despite providing lower conversion, proved to be a promising technique, as it reduces reaction time.