4112 Energy & Fuels 2009, 23, 4112–4115

Alkali-Catalyzed Biodiesel Production from Mixtures of Sunflower

Oil and Beef Tallow
Sevilay Taravus, Hakan Temur,* and Ahmet Yartasi
Engineering Faculty, Department of Chemical Engineering, Ataturk UniVersity, 25240 Erzurum, Turkey

ReceiVed March 10, 2009. ReVised Manuscript ReceiVed June 3, 2009

In this study, some physical properties of biodiesel obtained from different mixtures of sunflower oil and
beef tallow are investigated. The biodiesel cold-flow specifications, such as viscosity, pour point, cloud point,
and cold-filter plugging point, were tested for the different sunflower oil/beef tallow (SO/BT) ratios. Also, the
sulfur content and heat value of the biodiesel samples have been determined. It was observed that the examined
physical properties of the methyl esters changed negatively as the beef tallow ratio in the mixture increased.
However, until the ratio of 40% beef tallow and 60% sunflower oil, there was no important deterioration in
the properties of methyl esters. When beef tallow contents were higher than 40%, some specifications of
methyl esters were beyond the biodiesel standards of ASTM D 6751 and EN 1424.

1. Introduction
Biodiesel is an alternative and renewable fuel for diesel
engines and produced from vegetable oils and animal fats mostly
through a transesterification process. This is carried out chemi-
cally by reacting vegetable oils or animal fats with an alcohol,
preferably methyl alcohol, with the presence of usually a strong
base catalyst, such as sodium hydroxide or potassium hydrox-
ide.1 The instability of oil prices, limited fossil fuel resources,
and environmental problems resulting from fossil fuels have
pushed countries to focus on more national, sustainable, and
environmentally friendly fuel resources, such as biodiesel.2 The
alkali-catalyzed biodiesel production process is commercially
preferable, in the case of high free fatty acid contents of the
feedstock; acid catalysis can be used as an alternative process
route. However, in this case, the conversion rate of the
transesterification process is slow. The use of enzymes as
catalysts is tolerable for the free acid content but expensive and
unable to provide the degree of reaction completion.3 Although
a few of them are used in industrial scale, there are plenty of
raw material types from which biodiesel is attempted to be
produced, such as palm oil, soybean oil, sunflower oil, corn
oil, coconut oil, rapeseed oil, tung oil, waste cooking oils, tallow,
and cottonseed oil. Furthermore, algae, bacteria, fungi, microal-
gae, terpenes, and latexes were also studied as alternative diesel
fuels.2
The major barrier to commercialization of biodiesel is its
relatively high cost in comparison to petroleum-based diesel.
Because 70-95% of this cost comes from the vegetable oils used,
focusing on low-cost materials is an important step in developing
* To whom correspondence should be addressed: Engineering Faculty,
Department of Chemical Engineering, Ataturk University, 25240 Erzurum,
Turkey. Telephone: 90-442-231-4587. E-mail: htemur@atauni.edu.tr.
(1) Gerpen, J. V. Biodiesel processing and production. Fuel Process.
Prod. 2005, 86, 1097–1107.
(2) Fangrui, Ma; Hanna, M. H. Biodiesel production: A review.
Bioresour. Technol. 1999, 70, 1–15.
(3) Zhang, Y.; Dube, M. A.; McLean, D. D.; Kates, M. Biodiesel
production from waste cooking oil: 2. Economic assessment and sensitivity
analysis. Bioresour. Technol. 2003, 90, 229–240.
the biodiesel industry.3 Used frying oils, soapstock, and animal
fats are potential feedstocks to lower the cost of biodiesel.4
Rough projections of the cost of biodiesel show that the cost
of biodiesel based on animal fats is less by 30-50% than that
based on vegetable oils in the U.S.4,5 Furthermore, exhaust
emissions from beef-tallow-based biodiesel and its blends are
lower than that of petroleum-based biodiesel, similar to those
that are obtained from vegetable oils.6 However, there are some
problems with using animal fats as a feedstock in the biodiesel
production, such as poor solubility of tallow in methanol and
high free fatty acid content, which causes soap to form with
alkali catalysts. In addition, oils and fats can contain water as
a result of the extraction method (water from vegetable or animal
tissues released during crushing or melting), a solvent used for
extraction or the transformation method. Liquid oils and fats
often contain water that is soluble in lipids at about 0.05-0.1%.7
The water content has a significant effect on the transesterifi-
cation of glycerides with the alkaline or acidic catalysts.2
Furthermore, cold-flow properties, such as high pour point, cloud
point, cold-filter plugging point (CFPP), and viscosity, of the
biodiesel have been reported to show poor performance values
in the case of animal fats as a feedstock.8 Although there is an
ongoing effort to improve the specifications of animal-fat-based
biodiesel,9–11 to use animal fats as a lower cost feedstock
extensively, more research and technological development will
be needed.
In this study, it is aimed to determine the properties of
biodiesel obtained from animal fat and sunflower oil blends in
(4) Canakci, M.; Sanli, H. Biodiesel production from various feedstocks
and their effects on the fuel properties. J. Ind. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 2008,
35, 431–441.
(5) Bender, M. Economic feasibility review for community-scale farmer
cooperatives for biodiesel. Bioresour. Technol. 1999, 70, 81–87.
(6) Oner, C.; Altun, S. Biodiesel production from inedible animal tallow
and an experimental investigation of its use as alternative fuel in a direct
injection diesel engine. Appl. Energy 2009, doi: 10.1016/j.apenergy.
2009.01.005.
(7) Oils and Fats Manual; Karleskind, A., Ed.; Intercept Ltd.: Bedford-
shire, U.K., 1996; Vol. 2.
(8) Canakci, M.; Sanli, H. Biodiesel production from various feedstocks
and their effects on the fuel properties. J. Ind. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 2008,
35, 431–441.

10.1021/ef900211n CCC: $40.75  2009 American Chemical Society

Published on Web 07/07/2009
Alkali-Catalyzed Biodiesel Production Energy & Fuels, Vol. 23, 2009 4113

Table 1. Typical Compositions and Some Physical Properties of Table 2. Fatty Acid Contents of the Beef Tallow and Sunflower
Crude Beef Tallow and Sunflower Oila Oil
characteristics beef tallow (range) sunflower oil (range) fatty acids beef tallow (wt %) sunflower oil (wt %)
iodine number 40.0–49.0 133 C14:0 2.27
saponification number 190–202 188–194 C14:1 0.20
titer (°C) 40.0–49.0 16–20 C16:0 19.14 6.28
melting point (°C) 45.0–48.0 from –18 to –20 C16:1 2.54
C18:0 13.34 3.27
Fatty Acid Composition (wt %)
C18:1n9c 40.46 20.55
myristic (C-14:0) 2.0–8.0 <1.0
C18:2n6t 1.51 0.70
palmitic (C-16:0) 24.0–37.0 4.0–6.0
C18:2n6c 2.57 67.56
stearic (C-18:0) 14.0–29.0 3.0–5.0
C18:3n3 1.69 0.10
oleic (C-18:1) 40.0–50.0 50.0–65.0
C20:0 0.17 0.22
linoleic (C-18:2) 1.0–5.0 25.0–35.0
C20:1 0.14
Triglyceride Composition (%) C22:0 0.59
trisaturated (GS3) 15.0–28.0 0.5 C24:0 0.19
disaturated (GS2U) 46.0–52.0 2.8
monosaturated (GSU2) 20.0–37.0 22.4 the city of Erzurum) and at the temperature of 60 °C to prevent
triunsaturated (GU3) 0–2.0 74.1
beef tallow from freezing. The experimental procedure followed
a G, glycerides; S, saturated; U, unsaturated. in the study is shown in Figure 1. The constant parameters in the
experiments were chosen as reaction time, 60 min; oil/alcohol ratio,
the presence of an alkali catalyst. The motivation behind the 1:6 (in weight); catalyst ratio, 1% NaOH (in weight); reaction
study was to what extent beef tallow can be used as a feedstock temperature, 60 °C.
along with the sunflower oil without going beyond the standards After each experiment, viscosity (at 40 °C), pour point, cloud
set for the biodiesel. An optimum mixture ratio has been found, point, CFPP, density (at 15 °C), sulfur content, and heating value
beyond which properties of biodiesel started to deteriorate of the each sample were measured using proper analysis instruments
according to present American Society for Testing and Materials according to related EN standards. No matter what the blend ratio
is, 100% biodiesel samples (B100) were used in all of the
(ASTM) and EN standards.
measurements. The effects of blend ratios of sunflower oil/beef
tallow on the biodiesel specifications were investigated in terms of
2. Experimental Section properties given above. The ratios of sunflower oil/beef tallow (SO/
BT) blends examined are shown in Table 3.
The edible beef tallow used in this study was supplied from a
local slaughterhouse in Erzurum, Turkey. The acid value and density
at 20 °C for the beef tallow was 2.55 mg of KOH/g and 0.896 3. Results and Discussion
g/mL, respectively. The average molecular weight was measured
as 897 g/mol. The sunflower oil used in the experiments was The effects of the ratio of sunflower oil/beef tallow mixtures
supplied from a local market, which was refined, winterized, and on the physical properties, such as cloud point, pour point,
deodorized. Its acid value, density at 20 °C, and average molecular kinematic viscosity, CFPP, sulfur content, and heating value,
weight were 0.045 mg of KOH/g, 0.921 g/mL, and 988 g/mol, were examined in the study. The results are plotted as related
respectively. A typical composition and some characteristic physical property versus decreasing sunflower ratio in the blend. The
properties of beef tallow and sunflower oil are shown in Table 1.2,12 effects can be shown as follows.
Fatty acid methyl esters included in beef tallow and sunflower
oil were analyzed by a gas chromatograph (Agilent 6890N gas Effect of the Ratio of SO/BT on the Pour Point, Cloud
chromatograph, Waldbronn, Germany) with a capillary column Point, and CFPP of the Biodiesel. Poor low-temperature flow
(DB23, 60 m × 250 µm × 0.15 µm), temperature (increasing from properties are one of the most important hurdles for biodiesel.
100 to 200 °C with a rate of 5 °C/min and from 200 to 250 °C The cloud point of petroleum products is the temperature at
with a rate of 4 °C/min), flame ionization detector (FID) (H2 and which a cloud of wax crystals first appears in the liquid when
dry air) at 280 °C, helium gas (1.2 mL/min), and injection block
temperature of 250 °C. The fatty acid contents of both materials
are shown in Table 2. It can be seen from both Tables 1 and 2 that
saturated fatty acid content in the beef tallow is very high, whereas
the level of unsaturated fatty acids is lower as compared to
sunflower oil.
The methyl alcohol (99.9% purity) and NaOH catalyst (99.99%
purity) used in the experiments were products of Merck and Co.,
Inc. The experimental system basically consisted of a constant
temperature circulator, a jacketed glass reactor, a mixer, and a
condenser to condense the methanol vapors. The experiments were
carried out under the normal atmospheric pressure (610 mmHg for

(9) da Cunha, M. E.; Krause, L. C.; Moraes, M. S. A.; Faccini, C. S.;

Jacques, R. A.; Almeida, S. R.; Rodrigues, M. R. A.; Caramao, E. B. Beef
tallow biodiesel produced in a pilot scale. Fuel Process. Technol. 2009,
doi: 10.1016/j.fuproc.2009.01.001.
(10) Chung, K. H.; Kim, J.; Lee, K. Y. Biodiesel production by
esterification of duck tallow with methanol on alkali catalysts. Biomass
Bioenergy 2009, 33, 155–158.
(11) Guru, M.; Artukoglu, B. D.; Keskin, A.; Koca, A. Biodiesel
production from waste animal fat improvement of its characteristics by
synthesized nickel and magnesium additive. Energy ConVers. Manage. 2009,
50, 498–502.
(12) O’Brien, R. D. Fats and Oils, 2nd ed.; CRC Press: Boca Raton,
FL, 1980.
Figure 1. Experimental procedure.
Table 3. Examined Ratios of SO/BT Blends
SO/BT ratios
1 100% SO + 0% BT
2 80% SO + 20% BT
3 60% SO + 40% BT
4 40% SO + 60% BT
5 20% SO + 80% BT
6 0% SO + 100% BT
4114 Energy & Fuels, Vol. 23, 2009
Figure 2. Effect of the ratio of SO/BT on the pour point, cloud point,
and CFPP of the biodiesel.
Figure 3. Effect of the ratio of SO/BT on the viscosity of the biodiesel.
it is cold.13 The pour point is the lowest temperature for
movement of the sample under the prescribed conditions.14 The
CFPP is described as the highest temperature, expressed in
multiples of 1 °C, that a given volume of fuel fails to pass
through a standardized filtration devise in a specified time when
cooled under the conditions prescribed in the test method.14 The
cloud points, pour points, and CFPPs of biodiesel samples
increased as the percentage of beef tallow in the mixtures
increased, as shown Figure 2. The increase in the saturated fatty
acid ratio and the decrease in the unsaturated ones were seen
responsible for these increases, as affirmed in the literature.8
Effect of the Ratio of SO/BT on the Viscosity. Viscosity
of the biodiesel is important because of a proper operation
engine, flowing of fuel through pipelines, injector nozzles,
orifices, etc., and finally, effective atomization of the fuel in
cylinders.15 All viscosity measurements in the study were carried
out at 40 °C and under an open atmosphere. Viscosity of the
biodiesel almost remained unchanged as the beef tallow ratio
increases until the ratio of the biodiesel sample obtained from
60% sunflower oil and 40% beef tallow, as shown in Figure 3.
After this point, it began to increase.
It is previously reported that kinematic viscosity increases
for the fatty compound with an increase in the number of carbon
atoms (chain length) and decreases with an increase in the
number of double bonds primarily.8,17 Other than these factors,
position and nature of the double bond are other parameters
(13) Ali, Y.; Hanna, M. A.; Cuppett, S. L. Fuel properties of tallow
and soybean oil esters. J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc. 1995, 72 (12), 1557–1564.
(14) Tayal, S. Detection of cold properties of diesel and biodiesel fuel
using optical sensor. M.S. Thesis, University of MissourisColombia,
Columbia, MO, May 2006.
(15) Srivastava, A.; Prasad, R. Triglycerides-based diesel fuels. Renew-
able Sustainable Energy ReV. 2000, 4, 111–133.
TaraVus et al.
Figure 4. Effect of the ratio of SO/BT on the sulfur content of the
biodiesel.
Figure 5. Effect of the ratio of SO/BT on the heating value of the
biodiesel.
influencing viscosity subordinately. Moreover, kinematic viscos-
ity values measured at 40 °C for the common methyl esters are
well-known.17 For instance, kinematic viscosity values for the
oleic acid, lineloic acid, palmitic acid, and stearic acid methyl
esters were respectively measured to be 4.51, 3.65, 4.38, and
5.85 mm2/s.
The main fatty acid components in the beef tallow sample
used in the present study are oleic acid (40.46%), palmitic acid
(19.14%), and stearic acid (13.34%), whereas those of the
sunflower oil are the linoleic acid (67.56%) and oleic acid
(20.55%). The increase in the kinematic viscosity of biodiesel
as the sunflower oil ratio drops off to 60% in the mixture, as
seen in the Figure 3, is referred to the simultaneous effect of
decreasing linoleic acid and increasing oleic acid methyl ester
ratios in the biodiesel.
Effect of the Ratio of SO/BT on the Sulfur Content. Sulfur
content in the biodiesel is important in terms of minimizing
corrosion, wear, and tear in the combustion system and
preventing environmental pollution because of combustion
products.15 As seen in Figure 4, as the amount of beef tallow
increases in the blend, the sulfur content of the biodiesel
increases as well. Sulfur in the vegetable oils is a result of the
compounds, such as thioglycosides, which are included in
the oils, such as rapeseed, crambe, and mustard seed oils.16 The
results obtained from the present study showed that the sulfur
content is increasing in the biodiesel produced from sunflower
oil and beef tallow mixtures as the beef tallow ratio in the blend
increases. However, the point is that sulfur content of 100%
beef tallow is lower than 0.03, which is an acceptable level for
biodiesel sulfur content with regard to common biodiesel
standards, as seen in Table 4.
Effect of the Ratio of SO/BT on the Heating Value. In
opposition to the other parameters, an increased amount of beef
(16) Patterson, H. B. W. Hydrogenation of Fats and Oils; Applied
Science Publishers: New York, 1983.
(17) Knothe, G.; Steidley, K. R. Kinematic viscosity of biodiesel fuel
components and related compounds: Influence of compound structure and
comparison to petrodiesel fuel components. Fuel 2005, 84, 1059–1065.
Alkali-Catalyzed Biodiesel Production Energy & Fuels, Vol. 23, 2009 4115

Table 4. Experimental Values and Standards of the Biodiesel

petroleum diesel EN experimental value
parameters unit Europe EN 14214:2003 U.S. ASTM D 6751-07b 590-1999 SO/BT ) 60:40
density at 15 °C g/cm3 0.86–0.90 0.820–0.860 0.88
kinetic viscosity at 40 °C mm2/s 3.5–5.0 1.9–6.0 2.0–4.5 4.5
flashpoint °C 120 min 130 min 55 min 150
CFPP °C country specific country specific –2
cloud point °C report –18 12
pour point °C –25 –2.2
sulfur mass (%) 10 max 0.05 max 350 max 0.015
water mg/kg 500 max 500 max 200 max 110
heating value kJ/kg 42525 41320

tallow in the blend is beneficial for the biodiesel quality in terms
of the heating value. As seen from Figure 5, the beef tallow,
which is composed of a higher percentage of saturated methyl
esters, has a slightly higher heating value than pure sunflower-
oil-based biodiesel when burnt.
When the results obtained were assessed throughout the study,
the B100 biodiesel sample obtained from the 60% sunflower
oil and 40% beef tallow blend was found to be in unison with
American (ASTM D 6751-03) and European (EN 14214)
standard specifications. The consistency between the common
standards and experimental data obtained from the present study
is shown in Table 4.8
4. Conclusions
Although beef tallow has poor properties, such as high
viscosity and pour and cloud points as a feedstock in biodiesel
production, it is a necessity to take adventage of it to reduce
the raw material cost, which consists of up to 70% of the total
cost of biodiesel. The biodiesel samples of different blend ratios
of sunflower oil and beef tallow were tested in this study. The
parameters examined were kinematic viscosity, pour point, cloud
point, CFPP, sulfur content, and heating value of the biodiesel
samples. It was observed that the physical properties of biodiesel
obtained from the 60% sunflower oil and 40% beef tallow blend
were sufficient in view of present ASTM and EN standards. At
this mixture ratio, the levels of parameters were found to be
pour point, -2.2 °C; cloud point, 12 °C; kinematic viscosity at
40 °C, 4.5 mm2 s-1; CFPP, -2 °C; sulfur content, 0.015 (in
wt); and heating value, 41 320 kJ kg-1. In addition to this, the
flash point was 150 °C, the water content was 110 mg kg-1,
and the density at 15 °C was 883 kg m-3 for this ratio of the
blend. As a result, it can be put forward that the beef tallow
can be used as a biodiesel raw material in high percentage along
with the sunflower oil without lowering biodiesel quality
significantly. The use of beef tallow slightly increases the heating
value of the biodiesel as well.
EF900211N