The Characterization of Used Cooking Oil as a Raw Material to Produce Biofuel Using CoMo/Bottom Ash with Catalytic Cracking Process

Abstract

The research conducted in the study of converting used cooking oil into biofuel is done using the catalytic cracking technology process. Used cooking oil, a byproduct of household cooking oil waste, has the potential to be turned into energy. However, its utilization is not yet optimal, and it often just becomes household waste. Therefore, in this study, used cooking oil is used to produce biofuel. The CoMo/Bottom ash catalyst is used to accelerate the biofuel production process. The characteristics of the used cooking oil were analyzed using the Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) method, which revealed that the oil contained 2.50% linoleic acid, 0.54% myristic acid, and 22.11% palmitic acid, which are some of the main ingredients for making biofuel. The physical properties of the used cooking oil were found to be a viscosity of 3.81 mPa.s, a density of 0.93 g/ml, a refractive index of 1.43, and a flash point of 241°C. Meanwhile, the characteristics of the coal bottom ash used as a catalyst were analyzed using the X-Ray Fluorescence or X-ray diffraction method. It was found to contain 48.61% silicon dioxide (SiO₂), 13.97% aluminum oxide (Al₂O₃), 4.40% iron (III) oxide (Fe₂O₃), 2.92% calcium oxide (CaO), 0.82% magnesium oxide (MgO), and 0.48% potassium oxide (K₂O). The characteristics of the used cooking oil and the coal bottom ash that were analyzed show that used cooking oil can be used as raw material for biofuel production, while coal bottom ash can be used as a catalyst.