title: Enzymatic transesterification of waste vegetable oil to produce biodiesel.
abstract: An experimental study on enzymatic transesterification was performed to produce biodiesel from waste vegetable oils. Lipase from Pseudomonas cepacia was covalently immobilized on a epoxy-acrylic resin support. The immobilized enzyme exhibited high catalytic specific surface and allowed an easy recovery, regeneration and reutilisation of biocatalyst. Waste vegetable oils - such as frying oils, considered not competitive with food applications and wastes to be treated - were used as a source of glycerides. Ethanol was used as a short chain alcohol and was added in three steps with the aim to reduce its inhibitory effect on lipase activity. The effect of biocatalyst/substrate feed mass ratios and the waste oil quality have been investigated in order to estimate the process performances. Biocatalyst recovery and reuse have been also studied with the aim to verify the stability of the biocatalyst for its application in industrial scale.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering (D.I.M.E.G.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy. Electronic address: catialopresto@gmail.com.
authors.forename: C G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Lopresto
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering (D.I.M.E.G.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy; Department of Informatics, Modeling, Electronics and Systems Engineering (D.I.M.E.S.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Naccarato
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering (D.I.M.E.G.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Albo
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical, Energy and Management Engineering (D.I.M.E.G.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy.
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: De Paola
authors.affiliation: Department of Informatics, Modeling, Electronics and Systems Engineering (D.I.M.E.S.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chakraborty
authors.affiliation: Department of Informatics, Modeling, Electronics and Systems Engineering (D.I.M.E.S.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Curcio
authors.affiliation: Department of Informatics, Modeling, Electronics and Systems Engineering (D.I.M.E.S.), University of Calabria, Via Pietro Bucci, 87036 Arcavacata di Rende (CS), Italy.
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Calabrò
mesh_terms: D056804:Biofuels; D016956:Burkholderia cepacia / Q000201:enzymology*; D002384:Catalysis; D004800:Enzymes, Immobilized; D004951:Esterification; D000431:Ethanol / Q000737:chemistry; D008049:Lipase / Q000737:chemistry*; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000737:chemistry*; D018505:Waste Management / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D056804:Biofuels; D004800:Enzymes, Immobilized; D010938:Plant Oils; D000431:Ethanol; D008049:Lipase
keywords: Biodiesel; Enzymatic transesterification; Immobilized lipase; Waste vegetable oil