Effect of ethanol–palm kernel oil ratio on alkali-catalyzed biodiesel yield

The finite nature of fossil fuel necessitates consideration of alternative fuel from renewable sources. Palm kernel oil (PKO) has been identified as a renewable resource from which biodiesel can be produced. The effect of ethanol–PKO ratio on PKO biodiesel yield was studied with a view to obtaining optimal feedstock ratio. Experiments were conducted for ethanol–PKO ratios 0.1, 0.125, 0.15, 0.175, 0.2, 0.225 and 0.25 under transesterification conditions of 60 °C temperature, 120 min reaction time and 1.0% KOH catalyst concentration. Results obtained gave 29.5%, 54%, 75%, 89%, 96%, 93.5% and 87.2% average PKO biodiesel yield for the respective feedstock ratios. This shows increase in biodiesel yield with ethanol–PKO ratio up to 0.2. Standard fuel test results of the PKO biodiesel are within biodiesel specifications.