BIODIESEL BENEFITS

NEED AND DEMAND

The Philippine Biofuel Program of 2006 (RA 9367):
- Within 3 months 1% biodiesel by volume - Within the next 2 years 2% biodiesel by volume

Table 1. Data from the Department of Energy published in Biofuels Annual Manila Philippines

FEEDSTOCKS FOR BIODIESEL

Gmelina Arborea (Roxb.)

WOOD

Carpentry Joinery Furniture components and other household fixtures Musical instruments Posts

ROOTS AND LEAVES

herbal medicines

Objectives
To optimize the production of biodiesel from the

transesterification reaction between Gmelina Arborea oil and methanol with sodium hydroxide as catalyst by investigating the effects of temperature and duration.
To optimize the oil yield obtained through the

extraction of Gmelina Arborea fruit seeds with nhexane by investigating the effects of solvent to feed ratio and duration.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The potential of Gmelina arborea fruit seeds as an

alternative source of biodiesel Optimization of oil yield can lead to Gmelina arborea as a prospect feedstock for biodiesel fit for mass production Promoting industrial uses of overlooked resources Lowering biodiesel price Energy conservation

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

Extraction of oil from Gmelina arborea Effects of solvent to ratio to extracted oil Effect of extraction time Determination of free fatty acid content of the extracted oil Effects of reaction temperature to fatty acid methyl ester yield Effects of transesterification duration to fatty acid methyl ester yield
Analysis of pertinent fuel properties like density, viscosity, specific gravity, calorific value, specific heat, and cetane number is beyond the scope of this study.