Chemical modifications of ricinolein in castor oil and methyl ricinoleate for viscosity reduction to facilitate their use as biodiesels

• Main Authors: Ba, Sai, Zhang, Hao, Lee, Yiqin Jasmine, Ng, Chee Wee, Li, Tianhu
• Other Authors: School of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2017
• Subjects: Alcohol oxidation; Biodiesel
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/85080; http://hdl.handle.net/10220/43611
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Castor beans contain large quantities of oil and can grow in harsh environments. Unlike soybean oil, castor oil cannot be directly used for biodiesel production due to its extremely high viscosity. Here, we report an alternative source of biodiesel which possesses an ideal viscosity like soybean oil, and this new biodiesel could be obtained through simple synthetic routes from castor oil. Moreover, the properties of our newly designed ketone-containing triglycerides and its transesterified counterpart as biodiesel were systematically examined in our study, and their structures were characterized by using 1H NMR and 13C NMR. Practical application: The product obtained has the potential to be utilized as an alternative biofuel.