Palm Based Biodiesel
A better alternative for the environment because it is made from renewable resources and has lower emissions compared to petroleum diesel.
Made through a chemical process called transesterification whereby glycerin is separated from the fat or vegetable oil. Transesterificaton chemically break the molecule into two products which is Methyl Ester (the chemical name for biodiesel) and glycerin (a valuable byproduct usually sold to be used in soaps and other products).
Palm-based methyl esters have been extensively tested as a substitute for diesel in taxis, buses, lorries, tractors and stationary engines. The data available to date indicate that cold starting is easy and engines run smoothly with less smoke and reduced content of carbon particles in the exhaust fumes. The use of palm methyl esters as a diesel substitute contrast with the use of crude palm oil which does not require any modification of the engines. The economic viability of palm methyl ester as a diesel substitute will depend on the costs of diesel, crude palm oil and glycerin.
Alpha-Sulphonated Methyl Esters
Alpha-sulphonated methyl esters (SME) are a new class of anionic surfactant. Recently SME have received a lot of attention as active ingredients inwashing and cleaning products for a variety of reasons which include:
- Good lime-soap dispersing characteristic
- Good detergency especially in hard water and in the absence of phosphates
- C14, C16 and C18 methyl esters have best detergency
- Good biodegradability
Distilled fatty acid methyl esters with a low iodine value are used as the starting material for the production of SME. The fatty acid methyl esters are first reacted with sulfur trioxide at 80C ĄV 90C in a falling film reactor. The dark product obtained is bleached using hydrogen peroxide and then neutralized with alkali to produce the alpha-sulphonated methyl esters. Because of the good detergy of C16 ĄV C18 fatty acid methyl esters, palm stearin provides a suitable and cheap source of raw material for the production of SME. The detergency properties of SME derived from palm stearins have been found comparable with those of linear alkyl benzene sulphonates (LAS), the workhorse of the detergent industry. In hard water, the performance of SME is superior to that of LAS in phosphate-free detergent formulations.
Soaps and Fatty Ester for Soap
Soaps
Soaps are mixtures of sodium salts of fatty acids which can be derived from oils or fats by reacting them with caustic soda at 80 oC -100 oC in the process known as saponification. The use of soap as laundering agent and for cleansing the skin is many centuries old. Although modern detergents have almost eliminated the use of soap for home laundry purposes soap is still the main ingredients in toilet bars for personal use. The incorporation of both C16-C18 and C12-C14 fatty acids in soaps is important as they provide the cleaning, solubility and foaming properties required. Tallow and coconut oil, respectively have been the traditional sources of these fatty acids. A comparison between the fatty acid compositions of palm oil, palm stearin, tallow, palm kernel olein and coconut oils are rich in C12-C14 fatty acids.
Palm stearin and palm kernel olein are produced along with palm olein and palm kernel stearin when palm oil and palm kernel oil are fractionated. While palm olein and palm kernel stearin have higher added value because of their specific food applications. Palm stearin and palm kernel olein are normally sold at discount prices. Several studies carried out by Kifli et al revealed that palm stearin and tallow can be formulated together with palm kernel oil to give soaps that are comparable with tallow palm kernel olein blends. Since Palm stearin is cheaper than tallow the resulting soaps are expected to be cheaper. Perfume retention of palm based soaps has also been found to be better than that of soaps made from tallow. More interesting are the observations of Kifli et al on palm stearin and palm kernel oil blend that soaps based on these were found to have better foaming power and colour. Poor colour and discolouration are common complaints expressed by soap manufacturers attempting to use palm kernel oil for production of white soaps.
Fatty Ester for Soap
Fatty esters are increasingly being used for the production of soap. Soaps produced from fatty esters are normally better in quality than those made from fatty acids since the fatty esters can be better purified. When soap is made from fatty acids, esters and alcohol will be produced and its complete removal is necessary before the soap can be certified fit for use.
Fatty Acids for Candles
In the manufacture of candles from fatty acids a ratio of about 7:2 is required between the C16-C18 in order to ensure maximum shrinkage and hence easy removal from the mould. The ratio favours the used of fatty acids from palm kernel oil since they have a high palmitic acid content. Candles derived from palm fatty acids have longer burning life, produce less smoke and drip less tha candles made from petroleum wax but uncompetitive pricing has so far prevented the commercialization of palm-based candles.
Fatty Acids for Cosmetic Products
Only good grades of fatty acids can be used to make cosmetic products. The fatty acids normally used are myristic, palmitic and stearic. They serve various purposes i.e acting as lather improvers and conditioners, and providing luster and sheen.
Fatty Acids for the Production of Metallic Soaps
Another important application of palm fatty acids is for the production of metallic or non-sodium soaps. The most common ones are calcium and zinc palmitates and stearates. They can be prepared by either a fusion or a precipitation method. The process ability of rubber is improved by any fatty acids but zinc soaps have been found to provide better internal lubrication. The potential of palm-based calcium soaps as animal feed is being investigated.
Epoxidized Palm Oil, Polyols, Polyurethanes and Polyacrylates
Epoxidized palm oil can be produced by reacting palm oil, palm stearin or palm olein with peracids. Epoxidized oils especially epoxidized soyabean oil are used extensively as plasticizer for plastics particularly polyvinylchloride (PVC). A plasticizer increases the workability of plastic while stabilizer reduces the rate of degradation of a plastic by heat, light or micro-organisms. Epoxidized oils can fulfill both functions and their compatability with a plastic increases with their epoxide content. Because palm oil and its products have lower iodine value than soyabean oil. The epoxide contents of epoxidized palm oil are lower than that of epoxidized soyabean oil. As plasticizer or stabilizer, epoxidized palm oil are therefore not expected to perform better than epoxidized soyabean oil but their performance could be made comparable by slight modifications of the formulations. PVC jungle and rain boots plasticized or stabilized with epoxidized palm oil have been produced which are comparable in performance to those plasticized and stabilized with epoxidized soyabean oil.
The value of epoxidized oils lies in the versatility of epaxide rings. Being labile they can easily converted to other useful functional groups, thus diversifying end uses. Epoxidized palm oil can be converted to various polyols by reacting them with short chain polyhydric alcohols in the presence of catalysts. By changing the ratio of epoxidized palm oil to polyhydric alcohols, polyols with a range of hydroxyl values and viscocities can be produced. Polyols when reacted with isocyanates produce polyurethane foams. The water foam in the reaction acts as an internal blowing agents, thus avoiding the need to use environmentally unfriendly blowing agents such chlorofluorocarbons.
Polyols from epoxidized palm oil react with isocynates at a slower rate than do polyols based on petrochemicals. The resulting foams however have regular cell structures and exhibit good hydrophobicity. With suitable formulations these properties could be fully exploited to give rise to interesting products.
Polyacrylate resins can be produced from epoxidized palm oil by reacting them with acrylic acids. These resins can be applied on solid surfaces and when they are cured by UV-radiation, clear glossy finishes resulted. The hardness and tackiness can be increased or reduced by varying the amout and types of crosslinkers and the strength of irradiation used.
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