Design, construction and performance evaluation of a mini-scale batch reactor for biodiesel production: A case study of shea butter

This study developed a mini-scale batch reactor after evaluating the kinetics of biodiesel production. The reactor was evaluated for its performance by two-stage and one-pot syntheses methods using shea butter. The biodiesel produced was characterized and compared with the ASTM standards for biodiesel and diesel. The reactor was designed for 6.5 L total and 4.5 L working volume; the power rating and power delivery were 2.0 and 1.5 hp, respectively. The operating conditions for the reactor to attain its highest yields of 91.01% and 76.67% with the two alternative methods had 800 rpm agitation speed and 40oC temperature. The reactor achieved the design objective of better than 90% biodiesel yield with the two-stage method only. The biodiesel quality satisfied the ASTM standards. Therefore, the reactor could be scaled up for industrial production of biodiesel.