Table 1 Comparison of different methods of biodiesel transesterification, including two production methods on a commercial scale and a millimetrically scaled reactor.
Scale | Method | Temperature /°C | Molar ratio M/O | Concentration of catalyst/% | Residence period | Oil conversion/% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Commercial-scale production methods | Batch-stirred reactor | 65 | 9–30 | KOH 2% | 3–5 h | 99 | |
Supercritical system– continuous-flow production | 300 | 40 | × | 22 min | 80 | ||
Millimetrically scaled reactor | Microtube reactor26 | A | 60 | 4.6 | KOH 4.5 | 1 min | 55 |
B | 60 | 4.6 | KOH 4.5 | 4 min | 80 | ||
C | 20 | 23.9 | KOH 4.5 | 1 min | 30 | ||
D | 20 | 23.9 | KOH 4.5 | 4 min | 80 | ||
Droplet-based co-axial fluidic system (this work) | A | 60 | 4.6 | NaOH 3.2 | 1 min | 62.9 | |
B | 60 | 4.6 | NaOH 3.2 | 4 min | 88.1 | ||
C | 20 | 23.9 | NaOH 2.2 | 1 min | 87.9 | ||
D | 20 | 23.9 | NaOH 2.2 | 3 min | 92.4 | ||
