Waste Quail Beaks as Renewable source for synthesizing novel catalysts for Biodiesel production

Abstract In the current study, waste biomass (quail beaks) has been considered for synthesizing highly active hydroxyapatite (HAp) catalyst and used for biodiesel production. The produced HAp is characterized by several analytical techniques such as Thermogravimetric analysis/differential scanning calorimetry (TGA/DSC), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), Hammett indicator-benzene benzoic acid titration method and BET surface area. TGA/DSC analysis confirmed the complete removal of organic matter from the raw quail beaks. The XRD results revealed that the crystallinity of HAp phase was enhanced by thermal calcination with crystallite size of 37.33 nm at 900 °C. FTIR results showed the peaks of phosphate (PO4−3) and hydroxyl groups (OH−1) belonging to HAp molecules. EDX analysis revealed the presence of calcium (Ca) and phosphorus (P) compositions were 28.5 and 11.4 wt %, respectively. Total basicity and BET surface area of the synthesized catalyst were found to be 12.9 mmol/g and 4.54 m2/g, respectively. Furthermore, the treated HAp at temperature of 900 °C was used for biodiesel production from canola oil, rapeseed oil and waste cooking oil. Thus, HAp was opted to be highly active for biodiesel production with promising reusability.