Metal oxides as heterogeneous catalysts for esterification of fatty acids obtained from soybean oil

The growing demand for renewable energy sources stimulates the development of new technologies for biofuel production. Biodiesel synthesis by esterification of fatty acids is a favorable route, because, differently from transesterification, it does not produce glycerin and uses cheaper raw materials. In this work the study of metal oxides and their performance as Lewis acid catalysts in the esterification of fatty acids obtained from soybean oil presented promising results in heterogeneous catalysis, with reaction yields as high as 89%. The influence of variables such as temperature, reaction time and the amount of catalyst in the reaction yield was also evaluated. The possibility of recycling tin oxide was also studied, showing that it was possible to reuse the catalyst up to ten times without significant losses in its catalytic activity. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.