Journal of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering

Journal of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering

Synchronic Integration of Ultrasound Radiation and ZnO Nanoparticles for Biodiesel Generation: Optimization by Central Composite Design

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Basir Maleki
S. Masoumeh Hosseini
Chem. Eng. Dept., Esfarayen University of Technology, Esfarayen, North Khorasan, Iran.
10.22059/jchpe.2026.403722.1676
Abstract
This study investigated the enhancement of biodiesel yield from sunflower oil via transesterification using a zinc oxide (ZnO) nanocatalyst under ultrasonic irradiation. The properties of the nanocatalyst prepared by the sol-gel method were characterized by XRD, FTIR, SEM, and TEM analyses. The ZnO nanoparticles had an average size of 24 nm with a hexagonal, slightly spherical structure. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) and Central Composite Design (CCD) were applied to evaluate the effect of influential parameters on methyl ester yield. Besides, the accuracy of the suggested model was confirmed by Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). A reasonable accordance between the experimental and predicted data was achieved with R² = 0.9968 and adjusted R² = 0.9938. The optimum process conditions were a methanol/sunflower oil molar ratio of 10.98 mol/mol, an ultrasonic time of 26.28 min, and a nanocatalyst loading of 2.71 wt.%. Under these conditions, the RSM model predicted a maximum biodiesel yield of 90.5%, while the highest experimental yield was 89.57%, confirming the model's accuracy. Moreover, FTIR analysis of the produced biodiesel confirms successful synthesis. The nanocatalyst demonstrated high reusability over seven cycles, maintaining a biodiesel yield above 80% throughout, indicating excellent recyclability. Therefore, this research demonstrated that the combination of ultrasonic radiation and ZnO particles presents a promising approach for biodiesel production, enabling high efficiency within a short reaction time.
Keywords
Biodiesel
Nanocatalyst
Response Surface Methodology
Transesterification
Ultrasonic Radiation
Zinc Oxide
Subjects
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Journal of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering
Volume 60, Issue 1
June 2026
Pages 69-88

  • Receive Date 06 October 2025
  • Revise Date 06 November 2025
  • Accept Date 15 February 2026