Influence of partial acilglycerols in physical properties of vegetable oil and biodiesel: experimental determination and evaluation of predictive methods

• Grant number: 12/05138-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: May 01, 2012
• End date: April 30, 2013
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Food Science and Technology - Food Engineering
• Principal Investigator: Eduardo Augusto Caldas Batista
• Grantee: Camila de Oliveira Sousa
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia de Alimentos (FEA). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated research grant: 08/56258-8 - Phase equilibrium and purification processes in the production of biofuels and biocompounds, AP.BIOEN.TEM

Abstract

Vegetable oils play an important role in the human diet, due to their high energy content and being a source of a variety of fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids. Moreover, it has been highlighting its potential as a source of renewable energy in the form of biodiesel. The physical properties are important in the optimization of industrial processes and designing equipment involved in these processes. Similarly, these properties are essential in the product's features in which the fatty compounds are used. Several studies demonstrate the influence of partial acylglycerols on the properties of vegetable oils and biodiesel. Due to these factors, for both food and chemical industries, the determination of the physical properties of these products is of great interest. Because they are natural products, fluctuations may occur in their compositions and their properties may suffer significant variations. Predictive models which are based only on the chemical composition are a possible alternative to a need for systematic measurement of the viscosity, density, and melting point of the lipid compounds. Thus, the objective of this study is to evaluate the influence of the different levels of partial glycerides in the viscosity, density, and melting point of vegetable oils and biodiesel. Predictive models will be used to evaluate their ability to predict these physical properties. (AU)