BHARATI VIDYAPEETH ENGLISH MEDIUM

SCHOOL BALEWADI, PUNE

Session: 2022-23

Green Chemistry: Bio-Diesel and Bio-

Petrol

Submitted to – Nestha ma’am

Submitted by – Bhuvan Malviya
Class – 12th A
Roll no. – 22
 CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Bhuvan Malviya of class XII-
A science has successfully completed the project
under my supervision. The candidate himself did
all the work related to the thesis. The approach
towards the subject has been sincere and
scientific.

SIGNATURE
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am deeply indebted to my chemistry teacher
Neshtha ma’am, without whose constructive
guidance this project would not have been a
success. Her valuable advice and suggestions for
corrections, modifications, and improvements did
enhance my perfection in performing my job well.
I am obliged to Mrs. Bhavana Rai ma’am, our
principal for providing the best facilities and
environment to bring out our innovations and
spirit of inquiry through this venture. I am grateful
to my parents whose blessings and wishes have
gone a long way in the completion of this arduous
task. Last but not the least, I thank all my friends
and batch mates, without their prompt support
my effort would have been in vain.
 Abstract
The Objective of this project is to study GREEN
CHEMISTRY- Bio diesel and Bio petrol also study
extraction process of Bio diesel.
Green chemistry is the branch of chemistry
concerned with developing processes and
products to reduce or eliminate hazardous
substances. One of the goals of green chemistry is
to prevent pollution at its source, as opposed to
dealing with pollution after it has occurred.
Jatropha Curcas has been identified for India as
the most suitable Tree Borne Oilseed (TBO) for
production of bio-diesel both in view of the non-
edible oil available from it and its presence
throughout the country. The capacity of Jatropha
Curcas to rehabilitate degraded or dry lands, from
which the poor mostly derive their sustenance, by
improving land’s water retention capacity, makes
it additionally suitable for up-gradation of land
resources. Presently, in some Indian villages,
farmers are extracting oil from Jatropha and after
settling and decanting it they are mixing the
filtered oil with diesel fuel.
Although, so far the farmers have not observed
any damage to their machinery, yet this remains
to be tested and PCRA is working on it. The fact
remains that this oil needs to be converted to bio-
diesel through a chemical reaction – trans-
esterification. This reaction is relatively simple and
does not require any exotic material. IOC (R&D)
has been using a laboratory scale plant of 100
kg/day capacity for trans-esterification; designing
of larger capacity plants is in the offing. These
large plants are useful for centralized production
of bio-diesel. Production of bio-diesel in smaller
plants of capacity e.g. 5 to 20 kg/day may also be
started at decentralized level.
Activity: Making Biodiesel
Biodiesel is a mixture of methyl esters of fatty
acids (long chain carboxylic acids). It has similar
properties to the diesel fuel made from crude oil
that is used to fuel many vehicles. It can be made
easily from vegetable cooking oil that contains
compounds of fatty acids. Enough fuel can be
produced in this activity to burn in a later activity,
although it is not pure enough to actually be used
as fuel in a car or lorry. The synthesis is a simple
chemical reaction that produces biodiesel and
propane-1,2,3-triol (glycerol). Cooking oil is mixed
with methanol and potassium hydroxide is added
as a catalyst. The products separate into two
layers, with the biodiesel on the top. The biodiesel
is separated and washed, and is then ready for
further experimentation
Material required:
• Eye protection
• Access to a top pan balance
• One 250 cm3 conical flask
• Two 100 cm3 beakers
• One 100 cm3 measuring cylinder
• Five plastic teat pipettes
• Distilled or deionised water
• 100 cm3 vegetable-based cooking oil
• 15 cm3 methanol (highly flammable, toxic by
inhalation, if swallowed, and by skin absorption)
• 1 cm3 potassium hydroxide solution 50%
(corrosive)

Procedure:
1. Measure 100 cm3 of vegetable oil into the 250
cm3 flask. Weigh the flask before and after to
determine the mass of oil you used.
2. Carefully add 15 cm3 of methanol.
3. Slowly add 1 cm3 of 50% potassium hydroxide.
4. Stir or swirl the mixture for 10 minutes.
5. Allow the mixture to stand until it separates
into two layers.
6. Carefully remove the top layer (this is impure
biodiesel) using a teat pipette.
7. Wash the product by shaking it with 10 cm3 of
distilled or deionised water.
8. Allow the mixture to stand until it separates
into two layers.
9. Carefully remove the top layer of biodiesel
using a teat pipette.
10. Weigh the amount of biodiesel you have
collected and compare it to the amount of
vegetable oil you started with.

Activity 2: Testing biodiesel

How does biodiesel compare to other fuels? Just
because we can produce a fuel from an
alternative source, does that mean it is a good
idea? There are many factors that go into the
decision to use alternative fuels. Ideally the
physical properties of an alternative fuel should
equal or exceed those of the traditional product.
But how are fuels evaluated in the first place. In
this activity, biodiesel and some other fuels are
tested and compared for sootiness and acidity.

Material required:
• Eye protection
• Small glass funnel (approximately 7 cm
diameter)
• One 250 cm3 flask
• Two boiling tubes
• One two-hole stopper to fit the boiling tubes
• Filter pump
• A piece of wide bore glass tubing approximately
10 cm long with two one-hole stoppers to fit
• A piece of vacuum tubing approximately 35 cm
long
• Two short pieces of glass tubing to fit the one-
hole stoppers
• 5 cm glass bend to fit the two-hole stopper
• 90o glass bend to fit the two-hole stopper (one
leg to extend to bottom of flask)
• Two stands and clamps
• Two small metal sample dishes

• A little sodium hydroxide solution 0.1 mol dm-3

(irritant)
• Universal indicator solution
• A little mineral wool.

Procedure:
1. Pour 125 cm3 of distilled water into the 250
cm3 flask and add 10 cm3 of universal indicator.
Add one drop of 0.1 mol dm-3 sodium hydroxide
solution and gently swirl the flask so that the
colour of the solution is violet or at the most basic
end of the universal indicator colour range.
2. Place 10 cm3 of this solution into the boiling
tube.
3. Assemble the apparatus illustrated in Figure 1,
attaching it to the filter pump with the vacuum
tubing.
4. Place 2 cm3 of biodiesel onto a wad of mineral
wool in the metal sample cup.
5. Turn on the water tap so the filter pump pulls
air through the flask and ignite the biodiesel.
Position the funnel directly over the burning fuel,
so as to capture the fumes from the burning fuel.
Mark or note the position of the tap handle so
you can run the pump at the same flow rate later
in the experiment.

6. Allow the experiment to run until the universal

indicator turns yellow and time how long this
takes.
7. Record what happens in the funnel and in the
glass tube containing the second piece of mineral
wool.
8. Clean the apparatus, and repeat the
experiment using 2 cm3 of kerosene (this is very
similar to diesel fuel).

Activity 3: Potential for Biofuel

1. Technical Feasibility
• Can be blended in any ratio with petro-diesel
• Existing storage facilities and infrastructure for
petro-diesel can be used with minor alteration.
• From environment and emissions point of view
it is superior to petro-diesel.
• It can provide energy security to remote and
rural areas.
• It has good potential for employment
generation
2. Sources of Bio-diesel
All Tree Bearing Oil (TBO) seeds – edible and non-
edible
Edible: Soya-bean, Sun-flower, Mustard Oil etc.
Non-edible: Jatropha Curcas, Pongemia Pinnata,
Neem etc.
• Edible seeds can’t be used for bio-diesel
production in our country, as its indigenous
production does not meet our current demand
• Among non-edible TBO, Jatropha Curcas has
been identified as the most suitable seed for
India.
3. Advantages of Jatropha
• Jatropha Curcas is a widely occurring variety of
TBO
• It grows practically all over India under a variety
of agro climatic conditions.
• Can be grown in arid zones (20 cm rainfall) as
well as in higher rainfall zones and even on the
land with thin soil cover.
• Its plantation can be taken up as a quick yielding
plant even in adverse land situations viz.
degraded and barren lands under forest and non-
forest use, dry and drought prone areas, marginal
lands, even on alkaline soils and as agro-forestry
crops.
• It grows as a tree up to the height of 3 – 5 mt.
• It is a good plantation for Eco-restoration in all
types wasteland.

Trans-desertification Process
• It is the displacement of alcohol from an ester
by another alcohol in a similar process to
hydrolysis.
• Vegetable Oil i.e. the triglyceride can be easily
trans-esterified in the presence of alkaline catalyst
at atmospheric pressure and at temperature of
approximately 60 to 70oC with an excess of
methanol.
• If 100 gm. of vegetable oil is taken, 1 gm. of the
alkaline catalyst (Potassium Hydroxide), and 12
gm. of Methanol would be required
• As a first step, the alkaline catalyst is mixed with
methanol and the mixture is stirred for half an
hour for its homogenization.
• This mixture is mixed with vegetable oil and the
resultant mixture is made to pass through reflux
condensation at 65oC.
• The mixture at the end is allowed to settle.
• The lower layer will be of glycerine and it is
drain off.
• The upper layer of bio-diesel (a methyl ester) is
washed to remove entrained glycerine.
• The excess methanol recycled by distillation.
• This reaction works well with high quality oil. If
the oil contains 1% Free Fatty Acid (FFA), then
difficulty arises because of soap formation. If FFA
content is more than 2% the reaction becomes
unworkable.
• Methanol is inflammable and Potassium
Hydroxide is caustic, hence proper and safe
handling of these chemicals are must.

References:
1. www.google.co.in
2. www.chemistry.org
3. www.ott.doe.gov/biofuels/environment.html
4. www.pcra.org