Plasma Modification of Biomass-Based Starfish Catalysts for Efficient Biodiesel Synthesis

Area of Science:

• Catalysis
• Biomass Conversion
• Green Chemistry

Background:

• Biodiesel production is crucial for renewable energy.
• Developing efficient and sustainable catalysts is a key challenge.
• Biomass-derived catalysts offer an eco-friendly alternative.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate biodiesel production using plasma-modified starfish catalysts.
• To optimize catalyst composition for enhanced transesterification efficiency.
• To evaluate the reusability and stability of the developed catalyst.

Main Methods:

• Starfish biomass was converted to magnesium and calcium oxide.
• Plasma engineering was used to modify the catalyst with zinc oxide.
• Catalyst characterization included XRD, SEM, and XPS analysis.
• Transesterification of grapeseed oil was performed using the synthesized catalysts.

Main Results:

• Plasma modification increased catalyst surface area and basicity.
• The optimal starfish (Mg0.1Ca0.9CO3): ZnO ratio was 10:1.
• Achieved 97.7% fatty acid conversion for biodiesel production.
• Catalyst maintained 93.2% performance after three cycles.

Conclusions:

• Plasma-modified starfish catalysts are effective for biodiesel production.
• The optimized catalyst demonstrates high efficiency and reusability.
• This approach offers a sustainable route for biofuel synthesis.