Biodiesel production using a heterogeneous catalyst from Balanites aegyptiaca oil

Researchers are currently working on the diversity of renewable energy sources. The Balanites aegyptiaca (desert date palm) plant is found in many parts of Asia and Africa, including southern Algeria in the wilayas of Adrar, Bordj-Badji Mokhtar and Tamanghast. In this work, we were able to produce biodiesel from Balanites aegyptiaca fruits oil. The oil was extracted by the Soxhlet method, using hexane as solvent. The biodiesel produced by the transesterification reaction consists of adding hexane and heterogeneous catalyst, namely the husk of the fruit of Balanites aegyptiaca, to the oil, with a yield of 91.4%. The biodiesel produced was characterized by physicochemical methods, namely density, viscosity, refractive index, pour point and flash point. The characterization values obtained are very close to international standards.