Tungsten oxide supported on copper ferrite: a novel magnetic acid heterogeneous catalyst for biodiesel production from low quality feedstock

This study aims to synthesize a WO3/CuFe2O4 catalyst through a wet impregnation method and use it as a new magnetic acid catalyst in the transesterification process of waste cooking oil (WCO). The results of the characterization by XRD, FTIR, SEM, EDS, TG/DTG, VSM and Surface Acidity showed that the obtained bifunctional catalyst has been successfully synthesized. The study of the reaction parameters, such as reaction temperature (140-180 degrees C), reaction time (1-5 h), molar ratio MeOH : oil (25 : 1-45 : 1) and catalyst loading (2-10% m m(-1)) was performed in the conversion of WCO into biodiesel via transesterification. The reactional behavior showed the following optimal reaction conditions: reaction temperature of 180 degrees C, reaction time of 3 h, molar ratio MeOH : oil of 45 : 1 and catalyst loading of 6%. Based on the results, biodiesel with a maximum ester content of 95.2% was obtained using the WO3/CuFe2O4 magnetic catalyst under the optimal reaction conditions. The magnetic catalyst showed excellent catalytic and magnetic performance and it was applied in five reaction cycles with ester content above 80%. Biodiesel properties were found in accordance with ASTM limits. This research provided the development of a stable and reusable WO3/CuFe2O4 bifunctional catalyst for potential application in biodiesel production.

Automated summary

This study successfully synthesized a WO3/CuFe2O4 bifunctional catalyst through a wet impregnation method and applied it in the transesterification process of waste cooking oil. The results showed that under the optimal reaction conditions, biodiesel with a maximum ester content of 95.2% was obtained using the magnetic catalyst. The magnetic catalyst exhibited excellent catalytic performance and could be reused multiple times.