C.A OSAGIEDE

The study investigated the use of palm kernel shells and snail shells in the synthesis of a bio-based bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst. Using impregnation methods, palm kernel shells (PKS) biochar was functionalized with calcined snail shell doped with copper sulphate. The catalytic activity of the resulting catalyst was tested through the simultaneous esterification and transesterification of palm kernel oil (PKO). The characteristics of the catalyst were examined using X-ray diffraction spectroscopy (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The results showed that catalyst formulation with 90wt% CaO catalyst and 10 wt% activated PKS biochar generates the greatest biodiesel yield of 93.2%; this was reached with 3 wt% catalyst loading, 12:1 methanol to PKO molar ratio at 60 C within 1 hour and 30 minutes of reaction time. The bifunctional heterogeneous catalyst is chemically stable and can be reused up to five times, producing 72.6% biodiesel in the final cycles. The results show that the biodiesel produced meets the worldwide standards. The use of waste material to create an effective bifunctional catalyst for biodiesel synthesis from palm kernel oil (PKO) has significant commercialization potential in the future.