The world energy demand is increasing by day as a result of increase in population and high spate of industrialization.
This has therefore resulted in the search of alternative energy sources to replace the fast depleting fossil fuels. This
research work is therefore focused on the synthesis and characterization of avocado pear oil fatty acid methyl ester
(APOFAME) as a renewable energy. The oil content of avocado pear was extracted using solvent extraction method.
Avacado pear oil was characterized based on American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) method. The fatty acid
profile was determined using gas chromatography mass spectrometry while the functional group of the oil was analysed
using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The effect of process parameter on the yield of APOFAME was
investigated using one factor at a time method. The APO was pretreated to reduce the free fatty acid below 1% and then
traesterified using ethanol in the presence of potassium hydroxide (KOH) catalyst. The fuel properties of the APOFAME
produced was determined based on ASTM standards. The physiochemical properties of APO , free fatty acid,
saponification value, iodine value , kinematic viscosity, fire point, flash point, cloud point, pour point, density , moisture
content, gave the values 7.15%, 201.4mgKOH/g, 74.8gI2/100g, 38.5mm2
s1 @ 400C, 1670C, 1200C, 130C, 30C 919Kg/m3
,
6% respectively. The fatty acid profile of APO shows the constituents to be lauric acid 12.30%, palmitic acid 24.20%,
stearic acid 18.20%, myristic acid 14.54%, while the unsaturated fatty acid constituents are linolenic acd 10.61%,,
sapentaenoic acid 12.57%, and linoleic acid 7.55%. The process parameters , catalyst concentration, reaction
temperature, ,methanol to oil molar ratio and reaction time greatly affected the biodiesel yield as their increase resulted
in the increase of biodiesel yield until the optimum parameter was reached when the yield started decreasing. The
experimentally determined properties of the APOFAME; acid value, density, kinematic viscosity, fire point, flash point,
cetane number, refractive index, calorific value, iodine value, cloud point and pour point gave the values, 0.29, 873Kg/m3
,
4.95mm2s-1, 1600C, 1540C, 62.69, 1.5464, 34.683MJ/Kg, 34.2gI2/100g, 70C, 40C respectively.
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