CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION Commented [a1]: Used Cooking Oil as Biodiesel

-Anne Alejandro
A. Background of the Study -Farrah Mae Gaza
-Jaycob Francis Veneracion
-Andrea Valmadrid
People are dependent on energy sources that are based on petroleum and oil. It is undeniable that -Raljon Silverio
-Ryan Austin Cruz
the exploration of these resources are continuously getting larger and larger, however the supply -Precious Diane Magtagnob
of these resources is limited. As a result, prices of petroleum in the global market are rising, and -Francheska Ann Dela Cruz

people have started finding cheaper, alternative sources of energy. The use of alternative source
of energy is a priority of most developed nations nowadays; this includes the harnessing of sun’s
energy thru solar cells, wind energy by building up wind turbines, and biodiesel.

As stated, the supply of petroleum and oil is limited. Accompanying this crisis is global
warming, wherein harmful compounds from vehicles like CO and CO2 are emitted. When these
and various other pollutants are present, it poses great danger to biological systems and creatures,
including humans. Pollutants suspended in the air cause respiratory diseases and disorders like
irritation, asthma, lung cancer and coughing to humans. It may also aggravate existing or
underlying medical conditions like cardiovascular ailments and COPD (Chronic Obstructive
Pulmonary Disease). The waste products of fuel production threatens the environment by
polluting it; this inhibits growth of plants, makes breeding grounds of fish toxic, cuts agricultural
yield, induces acid rain, and mentioned beforehand, is potentially hazardous to biological beings.
Therefore, producing biodiesel will help minimize the effects of global warming, cut the
dependence on petroleum and oil, and save the remaining resources of it for future need.

Cooking oil is a must-have for every household, as it is used for cooking and flavoring dishes. It
comes primarily from plants, although animal and synthetic fat are also used. After cooking, the
excess oil is usually discarded or rarely reused.

One of the alternative sources that got the attention of many is biodiesel. Biodiesel commonly
comes from plant vegetable fats and oils, called biomass. It is primarily composed of fatty acid
esters obtained after transesterification of oil and alcohol. Some biodiesel sources are sorghum,
Jatropha curcas among others. It has been found to have lower emissions than regular fuel. As
stated above it is from vegetable fats and oils, hence a potential starting material is used cooking
oils.
 B. Objectives
The general objective of this study is to be able to utilize used cooking oil as starting material for
producing biodiesel, specifically to:
1. Provide a platform in creating the fuel with a low or no-cost household waste;
2. Potentially reduce costs in buying the product if ever commercially produced, and to;
3. Repurpose the waste product.

C. Statement of the Problem

This study seeks to answer the question if used cooking oil is effective as an alternative source of
fuel. Other queries are:
1. Will it minimize waste output to any extent?
2. Is it ideal in this field?

D. Hypothesis
The hypothesis is that used cooking oil is effective in making biodiesel and that all related
queries are answered.

E. Significance of the Study

The study provides an avenue to use waste product like cooking oil in producing valuable
material such as biodiesel. Also, the biodiesel product could be an alternative source of energy
that is not dependent on the petroleum industry.
The study would prove helpful to the following:
- Researchers seeking for alternative sources of fuel;
- Homes and communities, that the excess cooking oil may find new life in providing more
eco-friendly fuel, and to help ordinary people realize the contribution to the betterment of
the environment and society through themselves;
- Students, as an informative article and to bring the wonders of science through this
context; and
- To the future generations. The new source of fuel will help minimize the current
pollution and global warming, thus providing a healthier surrounding for all.

F. Scope and Delimination

 This study focuses on the possibility of producing biodiesel from used cooking oil. This
study covers the pre-treatment of used oil, chemical processing and some characterizations of the
product that will be obtained. It does not cover the actual application of the product such as the
use in automotive car.

G. Definition of Terms Commented [a2]: All references for this section stated at its
bottom.

Chromatography- separating the components of a chemical mixture by moving the mixture

along a stationary absorbing medium like paper or gelatin, which forms an isolated band that can
be analyzed. *

Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC) - a simple, quick, and inexpensive procedure which gives
an idea on how many components are present in a mixture. It is done using a thin, uniform layer
of silica gel or alumina coated onto a piece of glass, metal or rigid plastic. **

Gas Chromatography- more specifically, gas-liquid chromatography, involves a sample being

vapourized and injected onto the head of the chromatographic column. The sample is transported
through the column by the flow of inert, gaseous mobile phase. The column itself contains a
liquid stationary phase which is adsorbed onto the surface of an inert solid. This method will
only be used if possible. ***

Cooking oil- the subject of the study, in its used form. It is a type of oil specifically used for
food products, and may exist as vegetable, palm, and corn oil. ****

*Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromatography and Norton, P. B. (1995) Chromatography. The New

Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (3, 286). USA, Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.

**Retrieved from http://orgchem.colorado.edu/Technique/Procedures/TLC/TLC.html and

http://www.chemguide.co.uk/analysis/chromatography/thinlayer.html

***Retrieved from http://teaching.shu.ac.uk/hwb/chemistry/tutorials/chrom/gaschrm.htm)

****from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooking_oil
 CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED STUDIES AND LITERATURE

Related Literature

A. Oil

Oil, according to The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (1995), is any greasy
substance that is liquid at room temperature and insoluble in water. It may be fixed, or
nonvolatile; essential oil; or mineral oil.

Fixed oils and fats have the same chemical composition, consisting mainly of glycerides
from the reaction of glycerol, an alcohol, and fatty acids. Along with proteins and
carbohydrates, the glyceride oils and fats make up the three main classes of food. These
oils have a variety of industrial uses, aside from nutritive value. Oils from various seeds
and flowers are used in paints, varnishes, alkyd resins, leather dressings, and medicinal
purposes. (8, 892)

B. Oil plant

It is any of the numerous plants, either under cultivation or growing wild, used as sources
of oil. Oil plants include trees such as palm and herbaceous plants such as flax. It has
been known to man since ancient times.

Vegetable oils are used principally for food as shortening, margarines, and salad and
cooking oils, and in the manufacture of soap and detergents, paint, varnish, and other
various industrial items.

Oil is usually found in large amounts in the seeds of the plants and occasionally in the
fleshy part of the fruit, as in the olive and the oil palm. The oil is a reserve of high-energy
food for use by the germinating seed; large amounts of oil are associated with large
amounts of protein. The residual meal or cake after extraction is used as a protein
concentrate to feed livestock and poultry or as fertilizer, if poisonous.

Most of the important oil crops grow in tropical and semitropical areas, particularly West
and Central Africa, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia. In cool, temperate regions,
the oil crops are soybean, flax, sunflower, and plants of the mustard family. (The New
Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia, 8, 894)
C. Petroleum
Petroleum refers to a complex mixture of hydrocarbons that occur in the Earth in liquid,
gaseous, or solid forms. The term is often restricted to the liquid form or crude oil, but as a
technical term also includes natural gas and the viscous or solid form known as bitumen,
found in tar sands. The liquid and gaseous phases of petroleum constitute the most important
of the primary fossil fuels. Its use has a negative impact on Earth's biosphere, damaging
ecosystems through oil spills and air pollution through emission of ground-level ozone and
sulfur dioxide from sulfur impurities in fossil fuels.
Petroleum is a mixture of a very large number of different hydrocarbons. The molecules
most commonly found are alkanes (paraffins), cycloalkanes (naphthenes), aromatic
hydrocarbons, or more complicated chemicals like asphaltenes. Each petroleum variety has a
unique mix of molecules, which define its physical and chemical properties, like color and
viscosity. Pertroleum has a thousand different compounds which must be separated by
fractional distillation or fractionation. (The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia, 9,
344)
The alkanes, also known as paraffins, are saturated hydrocarbons with straight or
branched chains which contain only carbon and hydrogen. They generally have from 5 to 40
carbon atoms per molecule. Alkanes with 5-8 carbon atoms are refined into gasoline; those
with 9-16 are refined to diesel, kerosene and jet fuel. Above 16, they are refined to be fuel.
Heavier alkanes like paraffin wax with about 25 carbon atoms and asphalt with 35 and up are
cracked to produce more valuable products, as Wikipedia’s site tells.
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petroleum)
The aromatic hydrocarbons are unsaturated hydrocarbons which have one or more planar
six-carbon rings called benzene rings, to which hydrogen atoms are attached with the formula
CnHn. They burn with a sooty flame, and many have a sweet aroma. Some are carcinogenic.
Petroleum has been known in ancient time in the Middle East and in the Americas to be
coming from seeps in the ground. It has been used in warfare, lamps, and as medicine. As
people made innovations in using fuel and in their living, petroleum became a significant
figure in industrialization. Pollution caused by petroleum is a man- made hazard to the
environment; many serious pollutants are closely related to agricultural/industrial products.
(The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia, 9, 570) Demand for it has increased and
petroleum is running out.

D. Fatty acids
Fatty acids are one of the many types of lipids; they are long-chain carboxylic acids. They
exist as liquid or solids, and may be saturated or unsaturated. Saturated forms are solid at
room temperature, such as margarine and animal fats; these and others of its kind are usually
unhealthy. Unsaturated forms are, then, healthier; examples of these are vegetable and corn
oil.
 Many animals cannot synthesize linoleic acid (an omega-6 fatty acid) and alpha-linolenic
acid (an omega-3 fatty acid). Those fatty acids are required, however, for cellular processes
and the production of other necessary omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Thus, because they
must be taken in through the diet, they are called essential fatty acids. Omega-6 and omega-3
fatty acids derived from linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid, respectively, are needed
conditionally by many mammals—they are formed in the body from their parent fatty acids
but not always at levels needed to maintain optimal health or development. Human infants,
for example, are thought to have a conditionally essential need for docosahexaenoic acid
(DHA), which is derived from alpha-linolenic acid, and possibly also for arachidonic acid,
which is derived from linoleic acid.
Fatty acids have a wide range of commercial applications. For example, they are used not
only in the production of numerous food products but also in soaps, detergents, and
cosmetics. Soaps are the sodium and potassium salts of fatty acids.
[Yang, Gilbert C., Capco, Carmelita M. (2010) You and The Natural World: Biology. (Third
ed.) Quezon City: Phoenix Publishing House.]
[Norton, P. B. (1995) _______. The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (_, ___).
USA, Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.]
[Buthelezi, T., Dingrando, L., Hainen, N., Wistrom, C., and Zike, D. (2013) Chemistry: Matter
and Change. Quezon City: Phoenix Publishing House, Inc.]

Related Studies

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) gave $69,000 to the University of
Nevada to find a cleaner, more cost-effective way to produce biodiesel, which is cleaner burning
and less polluting than conventional petroleum diesel. The money will be used to fund a pilot
project that will produce biodiesel fuel, which is made from renewable fats or vegetable oils,
without the high costs and air pollution associated with conventional production methods.
Biodiesel fuel is non-toxic, biodegradable and creates less air pollution than petroleum diesel.
(Laura Gentile, 2004)

A study conducted by Dr. Tobias Takavarasha, Mr. Jai Uppal, and Dr. Hamimu Hongo
stats that, “A consultancy assignment conceived as a desktop study conducted in 5 weeks was the
collaborative work of governmental agencies in South Africa; it involves uses of biodiesel as
well as its impact in employment, production, economic growth, and potential disadvantages.
Seven crops were investigated for fuel use, namely: oil palm, sunflower, soya, Jatropha carcus,
sugar cane, cassava and sweet sorghum. Field visits were made to South Africa, Malawi and
Zambia. Zambia represents a landlocked country of the region with significant biofuel potential.
Malawi has for a long time been blending ethanol with petrol, and South Africa has examined at
considerable length the use of biofuels. While it would have been desirable to visit all member
states, it was not feasible since the priority was to produce an initial macro-level assessment that
would pave the way for in-depth country studies. The field visits involved interviewing a cross-
section of biofuel stakeholders that included government departments, farmers, oil companies,
bankers, biodiesel, ethanol and sugar companies, and other private companies.” (2005) This
proves therefore that this kind of alternative fuel is being studied and has potential to the
business and agricultural sectors.

Europeans have been experimenting with biodiesel for several years, and have developed
a commercial biodiesel industry. In the US and Canada, gasoline consumption accounted for 77
and 72 percent of total fuel consumption in 2002. In Europe, gasoline accounts for 48 percent of
total fuel consumption, and in Japan, 57 percent (Gustafson). Furthermore, the public sector in
much of Europe has developed a combination of financial incentives and fuel consumption
mandates to encourage both biodiesel production and consumption. In the Black Forest region of
Germany, all diesels burned must be a 100 percent biodiesel product, may it be private,
commercial or agricultural. Further, biodiesel is not taxed in Germany, while high taxes are put
on petroleum-based fuels. These facts were then used in T.R. Fortenbery’s study, similar to
above, in Wisconsin. (2004)

There are several benefits to using biodiesel as a blended fuel in diesel engines: Biodiesel
has a lower flash point than petroleum diesel and thus helps prevent damaging fires; biodiesel
burns cleaner than petroleum diesel and thus reduces particulate matter thus lowering emissions
of nitrogen, carbon monoxide and unburned hydrocarbons; the odor of burned biodiesel fuel is
considered by many to be less offensive that petroleum diesel; there are only limited or no
needed modifications to current engines to use biodiesel; there would be no need to change the
transportation and storage systems to handle biodiesel; biodiesel behaves similarly to petroleum
for engine performance and mileage; and biodiesel dissipates engine heat better than petroleum
diesel, so as a study from Georgia states. (Shumaker, McKissick, Ferland, and Doherty, 2000)

Further studies cite advantages and disadvantages of biofuel and their respective
statistical data, all of which can be further read in the links in the list of references. They display
low emissions of compounds emitted by fossil fuels; however, biodiesel emits NOx (Nitrogen
oxide), the amount of which may be negligible in small usages.
 CHAPTER III
METHODOLOGY

A. Materials

Materials Apparatus/ Equipment

Used cooking oil Filter
Enzyme/ Base Beaker
Methyl alcohol

B. Methodology
1. Pre-treatment of oil

1.a Filter used cooking oil to remove solids and other large particulates

2. Chemical processing

2.a. Used cooking oil will be added with excess alcohol (methyl alcohol)

2.b. A catalyst will be added (enzyme or base)

2.c. The glycerine/glycerol by-product will be removed

2.d. The ester produced will be collected and will be referred to as biodiesel

3. Characterization

3.a. Perform thin layer chromatography of starting material and product

3.b. Perform gas chromatography (if available)

References:

Balat, M. Biodiesel Fuel from Triglycerides via Transesterification – A review. 2009. Energy
Sources Part A: Recovery, Utilization and Environmental effects (31) 14.
Buthelezi, T., Dingrando, L., Hainen, N., Wistrom, C., and Zike, D. (2013) Chemistry: Matter
and Change. Quezon City: Phoenix Publishing House, Inc.
Downtown Bookworks, Inc., and Time Home Entertainment. Time for Kids Almanac 2013.
2012, Time for Kids Books.
Ferriols-Pavico, Josephine Ma., et al. Exploring Life Through Science Series, Grade 8. 2013,
Phoenix Publishing House, Inc.
Ferriols-Pavico, Josephine Ma., Ramos, John D. A., Morales-Ramos, Anna C., Bayquen, Aristea
V., and Silverio, Angelina A. Exploring Life Through Science Series, Grade 9. 2014, Phoenix
Publishing House, Inc.
Math, M.C., Kumar, S.P., Chetty, S.V. Technologies for biodiesel production from used cooking
oil – A review. 2010. Energy for Sustainable Development (14) 4, pp 339-345.
Norton, P. B. (1995) Chromatography. The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (3, 286).

USA, Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.

Norton, P. B. (1995) Oil. The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (8, 892). USA,
Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.
Norton, P. B. (1995) Oil plant. The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (8, 894). USA,
Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.
Norton, P. B. (1995) Petroleum. The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (9, 344). USA,
Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.
Norton, P. B. (1995) Pollution. The New Encyclopedia Britannica: Micropedia (9, 570). USA,
Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.
Yang, Gilbert C., Capco, Carmelita M. (2010) You and The Natural World: Biology. (Third ed.)
Quezon City: Phoenix Publishing House.

Websites:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_pollution#Health_effects

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cooking_oil
http://orgchem.colorado.edu/Technique/Procedures/TLC/TLC.html

http://www.chemguide.co.uk/analysis/chromatography/thinlayer.html

http://teaching.shu.ac.uk/hwb/chemistry/tutorials/chrom/gaschrm.htm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chromatography

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petroleum

http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/9e50770d29adb32685257018004d06fd/9e0feab118d9

8e95852570d8005e166a!OpenDocument&Highlight=0,biodiesel

core.ac.uk/download/pdf/7141322.pdf

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&ved=0ahUKEwjH_4G

W5rLJAhWHHJQKHXwPAgUQFggtMAM&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.compete-

bioafrica.net%2Fpolicy%2F060106-

SADC%2520Biofuels%2520Study%2520Final%2520Report.pdf&usg=AFQjCNE95b8A6Ed-

48WB7LxZO0vnuWOwhg&bvm=bv.108194040,d.dGY&cad=rja

Additional references/sites:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=15&ved=0ahUKEwjhi_z

qpLPJAhWDi5QKHSvADZ84ChAWCD8wBA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fkerea.org%2Fwp-

content%2Fuploads%2F2012%2F12%2FFeasibility-Study-of-Jatropha-Curcas-as-a-Biofuel-

Feedstock-in-Kenya.pdf&usg=AFQjCNF9142u0tekNl-

uUBbOAvHPGreSPg&bvm=bv.108194040,d.dGo&cad=rja
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=18&ved=0ahUKEwjhi_z

qpLPJAhWDi5QKHSvADZ84ChAWCFUwBw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fec.europa.eu%2Fresearch%2F

energy%2Fpdf%2F17_werner_korbitz_en.pdf&usg=AFQjCNF_QIEU0Jp73OZAXb75INCZrovsiw&

bvm=bv.108194040,d.dGo&cad=rja

www.biofuels.coop/archive/GA_biodieselrpt.pdf