Synthesis of NiMo/La-Al2O3 powders for efficient catalytic transesterification of triglyceride with the high yield of 95.2%

Enhancement of the transesterification efficiency of triglyceride has come under heated study in biodiesel-making industry. In this research, the NiMo/La-Al2O3 nanopowders have been prepared for producing biodiesel efficiently. The screening test showed that the NiMo/La-Al2O3 catalyst has the best catalytic activity for triglyceride transesterification. Besides, the process parameters including reaction temperature, time, oil-to-alcohol ratio and catalyst loading etc., also have been investigated for optimization of the transesterification process. The results showed that with 5 wt% of catalyst loading, and oil to methanol molar ratio of 1:9, the conversion yield of triglyceride could be up to 95.2% within 120 min at 160°C. The NiMo/La-Al2O3 catalyst has the outstanding recycle property, which proved that the prepared NiMo/La-Al2O3 powders can be suitable for biodiesels’ production.