Trimethylolpropane based biolubricant synthesis from sweet almond (Prunusamygdalus dulcis) seed oil for use in automotive applications.

Abstract

This paper presents a synthesis of a sweet almond oil-based trimethylolpropane biolubricant and the evaluation of its temperature-dependent viscosity properties. The oil was converted into biodiesel by the transesterification process after extraction, refining, and acid-alkaline transesterification. After that, biolubricant was produced by further transesterifying biodiesel with trimethylolpropane at 105 oC at a ratio of 3.9:1 for a 60-minute reaction time with a potassium hydroxide catalyst concentration of 1 wt. %. According to the American Standard Test Methods (ASTM), the biolubricant's pour point and index of viscosity were determined to be 267.50 and -4 oC, respectively. The measured viscosities were 42.80, 30.18, 21.39, 12.25, and 8.90 cSt. cSt at 30, 40, 60, 80, and 100 °C, demonstrating an inverse relationship between temperature and lubricant viscosity. The difference between the FTIR spectra of the biodiesel and the biolubricant—1755.74 cm-1 versus 1743.96 cm-1—verifies the ester group. Sweet almond oil has a higher iodine content than unsaturated glycerides (9.52 g of iodine per 100 g of oil sample) and includes 53.478 % more unsaturated fatty acids than saturated fatty acids, and 71.725 % unsaturated fatty acids for biolubricant according to gas chromatographic data. Linoleic acid made up the majority of the fatty acids in the oil and synthetic biolubricant, with percentages of 31.44 and 45.93 %, respectively. Sweet almond biolubricant and oil contained palmitic, linoleic, and oleic acids. The biolubricant has the potential to function as light gear oil for automobiles because its characterization results correlate favorably with the ISO VG-32 criteria

Keywords

• biolubricant
• biodiesel
• sweet almond oil
• trimethylopropane
• transesterification

References

1. 1. Cecilia JA, Ballesteros Plata D, Alves Saboya RM, Tavares de Luna FM, Cavalcante CL Jr, Rodríguez-Castellón E. An overview of the biolubricant production process: Challenges and future perspectives. Processes (Basel) [Internet]. 2020;8(3):257. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/pr8030257
2. 2. Salimon J, Abdullah BM, Yusop RM, Salih N. Synthesis, reactivity and application studies for different biolubricants. Chem Cent J [Internet]. 2014;8(1):16. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1752-153X-8-16
3. 3. Alves SM, Barros BS, Trajano MF, Ribeiro KSB, Moura E. Tribological behavior of vegetable oil-based lubricants with nanoparticles of oxides in boundary lubrication conditions. Tribol Int [Internet]. 2013;65:28–36. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.triboint.2013.03.027
4. 4. Bart, J.C., Cavallaro, S. and Gucciardi, E. Biolubricants: Science and Technology , Cambridge, Woodhead Publishing Series, 2013, cap 1, Renewable lubricants. Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/ B978085709263250001X
5. 5. Delgado AE, Aperador WA. Estudio Comparativo del Poder Lubricante y Estabilidad Oxidativa entre el Aceite de Ajonjolí y Aceite Mineral 360. CIT Inform Tecnol [Internet]. 2014;25(4):79–90. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.4067/s0718-07642014000400011
6. 6. Alang MB, Ndikontar MK, Sani YM, Ndifon PT. Synthesis and characterisation of a biolubricant from Cameroon palm kernel seed oil using a locally produced base catalyst from plantain peelings. Green Sustain Chem [Internet]. 2018;08(03):275–87. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/gsc.2018.83018
7. 7. Syahrullail S, Kamitani S, Shakirin A. Performance of vegetable oil as lubricant in extreme pressure condition. Procedia Eng [Internet]. 2013;68:172–7. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.proeng.2013.12.164
8. 8. Audu TOK. Extraction and Characterization of Chrysophyllum albidum and Luffa cylindrica Seed Oils. Petroleum Technology Development Journal : An International Journal. 2013;3(1):1–7.

9. 9. Mustapha AO, Adepoju RA, Ajiboye RY, Afolabi YT, Jimoh AA, Abdulsalam ZA. Production, properties and fatty acids profile of some refined vegetable oils based biodiesels. Asian Journal of Advances in Research [Internet]. 2021 [cited 2022 Sep 21];17–26. Available from: https://mbimph.com/index.php/AJOAIR/article/view/2161
10. 10. AOCS (2010).The American Oil Chemists Society Official Methods of Analysis Cd 3-25. 11. American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) Standards Methods: ASTM pub; Philadelphia, 2003. 12. Bilal S, Mohammed-Dabo I, Nuhu, M, Kasim S.A, Almustapha, I.H and Yamusa. Y.A Production of biolubricant from Jatropha curcas seed oil. Journal of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science. 2013; 4(6):72-79. https://doi.org/10.5897/JCEMS2013.0164 13.
11. 14 N. Mohammed, "Synthesis of biolubricant from vegetable oils," MSc Thesis submitted to the Department of Chemical Engineering, School of Postgraduate Studies, Faculty of Engineering. Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, 2015.
12. Kamalakar K, Rajak AK, Prasad RBN, Karuna MSL. Rubber seed oil-based biolubricant base stocks: A potential source for hydraulic oils. Ind Crops Prod [Internet]. 2013;51:249–57. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.indcrop.2013.08.058
13. 15. Musa U, Mohammed IA, Sadiq MM, Aberuagba F, Olurinde OA. Synthesis and Characterization of Trimethylolpropane-Based Biolubricants from in situ derived Castor oil Methyl Ester. In: Proc 45th Annual Conference of Nigeria Society of Chemical Engineer (NSChE). 2015. p. 248–53.
14. 16. Narayana Sarma R, Vinu R. Current status and future prospects of biolubricants: Properties and applications. Lubricants [Internet]. 2022;10(4):70. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/lubricants10040070
15. 17. Ahmad U, Raza Naqvi S, Ali I, Saleem F, Taqi Mehran M, Sikandar U, et al. Biolubricant production from castor oil using iron oxide nanoparticles as an additive: Experimental, modelling and tribological assessment. Fuel (Lond) [Internet]. 2022;324(124565):124565. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.fuel.2022.124565
16. 18. Appiah G, Tulashie SK, Akpari EEA, Rene ER, Dodoo D. Biolubricant production via esterification and transesterification processes: Current updates and perspectives. Int J Energy Res [Internet]. 2022;46(4):3860–90. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/er.7453
17. 19. Kleinaitė E, Jaška V, Tvaska B, Matijošytė I. A cleaner approach for biolubricant production using biodiesel as a starting material. J Clean Prod [Internet]. 2014;75:40–4. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2014.03.077
18. 20. Mustapha AO, Adepoju RA, Ajiboye RY, Afolabi YT, Azeez SO, Ajiboye AA. Improvement of fuel properties and fatty acid composition of biodiesel from waste cooking oil after refining processes. International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation [Internet]. 2021;08(04):80–7. Available from: http://dx.doi.org/10.51244/ijrsi.2021.8405
19. 21. Rudnick LR. Automotives Gear Lubricants. Journal of Chemistry and Technology. 2006;425–40.