Valorization of tung oil derived free fatty acid by non-conventional method using novel microcrystalline cellulose based mesoporous acid catalyst for sustainable application: Process optimization using response surface methodology

The catalyst plays a significant function in industrial unit processes since it allows reactants to be converted into valuable compounds via chemical reactions. However, the synthesis of FAME from edible vegetable oils, non-edible vegetable oils, and animal fats are used to synthesize FAME but, homogeneous catalysts have encountered difficulties in the synthesis of FAME. To overcome these problems, current research is focusing on the synthesis of a novel silica-supported catalyst known as the heterogeneous cellulose microcrystalline (CMBSA-Si) catalyst and its application of FAME synthesis using non-edible tung oil. Response surface methodology is used for the optimization process. According to experimental results, the following are the reaction conditions for the synthesis of FAME in the microwave with a yield of 99.99%: 15 wt% CMBSA-Si catalyst loading, 65 °C reaction temperature, 1:10 molar ratio of FFA-to-Methanol, and a reaction period of 50 min. The CMBSA-Si catalyst was characterized using FT-IR, XRD, SEM-EDAX, BET, and TGA-DTA analysis. Tung oil and FAME were also characterized using FT-IR, and 1H and 13C NMR spectroscopy. For the synthesis of FAME from non-edible tung oil, the CMBSA-Si catalyst presents a solution to the problems encountered by traditional homogeneous catalysts. This synthesized FAME further can be used to prepare polyol for its different polyurethane applications.