Molecular interaction of heterogeneous catalyst in catalytic cracking process of vegetable oils: chromatographic and biofuel performance investigation

Abstract Catalytic cracking processes (CC) of non-edible vegetable oils (VOs) are considered efficient pathway to produce alternative energy sources to replace the fossil fuel. Castor oil (CO) and jatropha oil (JO) are the appropriate resources for biofuels because of their chemical structures and their hydrocarbon chains which are similar to fuel. This investigation was conducted to synthesize, characterize and evaluate acidic catalyst in the CC of castor and JO. The interaction between the oils and the catalyst was studied based on the brand of the produces biofuels. The effect of the concentration of the catalyst on the reaction product was studied including: viscosity, kinematic viscosity, pour point and cloud point. The results revealed that the prepared catalyst can catalyze the cracking reaction of the VOs and produce several grades of biofuels. The study displayed that the physical and fuel characteristics of the obtained biofuels are located within the ASTM specification limits. Also, the chemical nature of the cracked oil has a substantial impact on the composition of the achieved biofuel. The mechanisms of the CC processes of CO and JO were proposed. The physical and fuel properties of the achieved biofuels were discussed using their chromatographic analysis data.