LAUSR

Abstract A kinetic model has been developed based on the experimental data in the open literature for the simultaneous esterification of myristic acid and transesterification of rapeseed oil with methanol by using sulphated zirconia catalyst at three different temperatures (120 °C, 150 °C, 170 °C) and methanol to oil ratio (20:1). The developed kinetic model has been utilized for the cross-validation of methanol to oil ratio of 10:1 and 4:1 and at a temperature of 170 °C, which is in accordance with the experimental data. Furthermore, the validated kinetic model has been extended to find the optimal process conditions for the desired conflicting objectives. Trade-off solutions for this process are obtained by utilizing the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II). The objective is to obtain maximum FAME (fatty acid methyl ester) in minimum methanol to oil ratio and minimum reaction temperature. Addition of oil, methanol, myristic acid and temperature are considered as decision variables with relevant process constraints. A wide range of choices have been obtained for the present optimization setup. The yield of FAME is strongly depends on the reaction temperature, reaction time and methanol to oil ratio. The optimal methanol to oil ratio of 10–15 is sufficient to enhance the FAME yield.