Lipases as Biocatalyst for Biodiesel Production

Global shortages of fossil fuels, significant rise in the price of crude oil, and increased environmental concerns have stimulated the rapid growth of biodiesel production. Biodiesel is generally produced through transesterification reaction catalyzed either chemically or enzymatically. Enzymatic transesterification is of interest since it shows advantages over the chemical process and, in addition, is considered a "green" process. This chapter reviews the current status of biodiesel production with a lipase biocatalysis approach, including sources of lipases, kinetics, lipase immobilization techniques, and lipase reaction mechanism for biodiesel production. Factors affecting biodiesel production and the economic feasibility of lipase biodiesel production are also covered.