Recent trends in biodiesel production

Document Type : Review Paper

Authors

1 Microbial Biotechnology and Biosafety Department, Agricultural Biotechnology Research Institute of Iran (ABRII), AREEO, Karaj, Iran.

2 Biofuel Research Team (BRTeam), Karaj, Iran.

3 Department of Chemical Engineering, Isfahan University of Technology, 84156-83111 Isfahan, Iran.

4 Swedish Centre for Resource Recovery, University of Borås, 501 90 Borås, Sweden.

5 Center for Environmental Research and Technology (CE-CERT), Bourns College of Engineering, University of California, Riverside, California, USA.

Abstract

This article fully discusses the recent trends in the production of one the most attractive types of biofuels, i.e., biodiesel.with a focus on the existing obstacles for its large scale production. Moreover, recent innovations/improvements under three categories of upstream, mainstream, and downstream processes are also presented. Upstream strategies are mainly focused on seeking more sustainable oil feedstocks and/or enhancing the quality of waste-oriented ones. The mainstream strategies section highlights the numerous attempts made to enhance agitation efficiency including chemical and/or mechanical strategies. Finally, the innovative downstream strategies basically dealing with 1) separation of biodiesel and glycerin, 2) purification of biodiesel and glycerin, and 3) improving the characteristics of the produced fuel, are comprehensively reviewed.

Graphical Abstract

Recent trends in biodiesel production

Keywords


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