Stirring and mixing in ethylic biodiesel production

Abstract This study aimed to analyze the influence of stirring and mixing on the production of soybean biodiesel. It was verified the influence of the baffle, different stirring speeds and two types of impellers (turbine and blade). The experiments were conducted by full experimental design 2 3 with the following fixed parameters: temperature (70 °C), oil/ethanol molar ratio (1/10), catalyst amount (1.5%), and reaction time (30 min). The independent variables were impeller type (turbine or blade), baffle (presence or absence), and stirring speed (150 or 350 rpm). Chromatographic analyses helped to determine the yield of biodiesel production at different operating times. The optimized parameters turbine impeller, absence of baffle, and stirring speed of 350 rpm provided high biodiesel yields within the first minutes of reaction. The analysis of the effect over time allows to verify in which period the variables had more influence on the biodiesel production and in which time there is no increase of the yield.