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Comment on my Chemistry EE - Transesterification of Vegetable Oil to Biodiesel


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Here is my Chemistry EE Topic and Question that I have developed:
 
Topic:
"A comparison of NaOH and CaO as alkaline catalysts in the transesterification reaction of Vegetable Oil to Bio diesel based on Green Chemistry Principles"
 
RQ:
“How would NaOH and CaO compare as alkaline based catalysts in a green synthesis of bio diesel from the transesterification of Vegetable Oil?"
 
Independent Variable/s:
  • Type of Catalyst - Homogeneous (NaOH) and Heterogeneous (CaO) [amount and concentration are control]
 
Dependent Variables:
  • Rate of Reaction
  • Yield of bio-diesel Produced (might replace this with something else since yield is not affected by the catalyst; suggestions?)
  • Amount of dissolved catalyst in produced bio-diesel (it affects the performance of the fuel)
 
Thoughts? Questions? Comments? Concerns?
I'd appreciate some constructive criticism with anything on this post. I'm trying to get a solid grasp of my topic at this time so anything helps! Please point out the uncertainties and invalidities and I'll be thankful.
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Remember that when measuring rate, you have to measure instantaneous rate. So you can't wait after reaction is done to find overall/average. You need to fast-changing parameters, like pressure, temperature, pH, amount of liquid etc. 

Yield definitely is affected because you cannot guarantee you always reach equilibrium. There are also adjusted rate constants that normalize rate to gram of solid catalysts (eg change of concentration per time per gram catalyst) and you can try if those improve data. 

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50 minutes ago, kw0573 said:

There are also adjusted rate constants that normalize rate to gram of solid catalysts (eg change of concentration per time per gram catalyst) and you can try if those improve data. 

Sorry, I am not familiar with this. How would this help my experiment? 

Also, thanks for the comment! Greatly appreciated! 

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In heterogeneous reactions, the contact area between catalyst and the solution impacts the rate of reaction. So one way to do this is that if you use 0.2 g of solid catalyst you may get a different rate than 0.4 g. I am not saying you have to do this but it is something to consider. 

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  • 8 months later...

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