Production of biodiesel from locally available spent vegetable oils / Mohamed Mostafa Alnaggar ; Supervised Mahmoud Elrifai , Fatma Ashour , Reem Ettouney

Thesis (Ph.D.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Engineering- Department of Chemical Engineering

Biodiesel is produced by chemical reaction of vegetable oil or animal fat with an alcohol such as methanol, the reaction requires a catalyst, usually a strong base, such as sodium or potassium hydroxide, to produce a new chemical compound alled methyl ester. This thesis addresses biodiesel production from locally available spent vegetable oils of different origins with different chemical compositions to investigate the use of the produced biodiesel as a fuel in internal combustion engines. The experimental work covers the trans-esterification step using both ultrasonic and traditional mixing methods. The physical properties such as density, viscosity, kinematic viscosity, cetane number, flash point, cloud point, pour point, acid value and saponification value were determined and compared to diesel fuel of standard specifications. The work then by compares both engine performance and emissions obtained on using the blends of the produced biodiesel with those of diesel fuel. The thesis is concluded by a preliminary economic study of the use of the produced biodiesel

Issued also as CD