Silva and Cardoso, J Thermodyn Catal 2016, 7:2 DOI: 10.4172/2157-7544.1000173 Research Article Open Access Journal of Thermodynamics & Catalysis J o u r n a l o f T h e r m o d y n a m i c s & C a t a l y s i s ISSN: 2157-7544 Volume 7 • Issue 2 • 1000173 J Thermodyn Catal ISSN: 2160-7544 JTC, an open access journal Assessing the Activity of Solid-Suported SnCl 2 Catalysts on the Oleic Acid Esterification for Biodiesel Production Márcio José Da Silva* and Abiney Lemos Cardoso Chemistry Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil *Corresponding author: Márcio José Da Silva, Chemistry Department, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais State, Brazil, E-mail: silvamj2003@ufv.br Received June 01, 2016; Accepted July 06, 2016; Published July 13, 2016 Citation: Silva MJD, Cardoso AL (2016) Assessing the Activity of Solid-Suported SnCl 2 Catalysts on the Oleic Acid Esterifcation for Biodiesel Production. J Thermodyn Catal 7: 173. doi:10.4173/2160-7544.1000173 Copyright: © 2016 Silva MJD, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Keywords: Esterifcation; Tin chloride; Free fatty acids; Heterogeneous catalysis Introduction Te exhaustion of the fossil petrol reserves, in combination with the environmental impact generated by the green-house efect gas emission has stimulated the search by alternative and renewable feedstock for energy production [1]. Besides this crescent demand, the industry chemistry and academy in all parts of world are developing environment friendly technologies for the production of alternative fuels [2]. Nowadays, the biodiesel is a “green” alternative fuel that has arisen as an attractive option, mainly because it’s less pollutant than fossil diesel and can be obtained from renewable sources. Currently, the biodiesel is manufactured from alkaline transesterifcation of edible or non-edible vegetable oils via a well-established industrial process [3,4]. However, there are serious drawbacks related to its conventional production process, such as a greater generation of efuents and salts from neutralization steps of the products and wastes, the use of non- recyclable catalysts and the incompatibility with acid raw material with high amount of FFA [4,5]. Tese important features have hardly afected the fnal cost to biodiesel production [6]. An interesting alternative for lower biodiesel price is produce it directly from low cost lipidic raw materials are normally rich in FFA [7]. It should be mentioned that even though traditional mineral acids are an inexpensive catalysts able to those processes, they are equally corrosive, are not reusable and results in a large generation of acid efuents which should be neutralized at the end of the reaction, leaving greater amount of salts to be disposed of into environment [7,8]. Terefore, to develop recyclable alternative catalysts for FFA esterifcation reactions presents in low cost feedstokes and food industry rejects can be an option strategically important, and undoubtedly can produce biodiesel at more competitive cost via a cleaner technology [9]. Recently, several works have been described the development of heterogeneous catalysts based on acids solids that appear to ofer a good perspective to make the biodiesel production more environment friendly [10,11]. Nevertheless, serious technological drawbacks such as drastic conditions reaction, the rigorous control of raw material quality in relation to water content, beyond of the leaching catalyst provoked by presence of alcohol seems suggest that those process yet are hard to control. Alternatively, to develop catalysts for the direct conversion into biodiesel of lipid wastes basically constituted of FFA, or yet for the pre-esterifcation of raw materials that have high acidity seem be also a challenge to be overcome [12]. Nowadays, the majority of the catalysts conventionally used in the FFA esterifcation reactions are Brønsted acids. However, features such the higher corrosive character besides greater generation of residues and salts compromises the use of these traditional catalysts [13]. Lewis acids can be interesting alternative catalysts for biodiesel production. However, their high cost, the manipulation difcult and the intolerance to water of compounds traditionally used such as BF3 and others common reagents of organic synthesis, also does not favor the use of these latters in FFA esterifcation at industrial scale [14]. Particularly, we have concentrating eforts in developing an alternative esterifcation processes based on tin chloride, an simple, easily handling, water tolerant and inexpensive Lewis acid [15,16]. On the other hand, the SnCl 2 is also most attractive, because it is are commercially available and easy to handle [17]. Moreover, its display remarkably low toxicity, is tolerant to water, economically cost efective, and can be used in recyclable processes [18]. Although Sn(II) catalysts have been used in homogeneous phase, they are though less corrosive than mineral acids [19]. In this work, the application of solid supported SnCl 2 catalysts on FFA esterifcation is described. Our intention was assess if supported tin(II) catalysts can be potentially used on direct conversion of FFA into biodiesel via ethanol esterifcation reactions. Te reusability, the less corrosion, the mild condition reactions and the compatibility with ethanol, which is also a renewable raw material, comprise positive aspects of this process. Moreover, the stability and possibility of reuse of supported Sn(II) catalysts were investigate. Abstract The search for cleaner methodologies has forcing the chemical industry to seek environmentally benign acid catalysts. SnCl 2 .2H 2 O is an affordable commercially Lewis acid, water tolerant and easy to handling, cheaper, and less corrosive. Recently, we have demonstrated that it is an effcient catalyst to produce biodiesel in homogeneous catalysis conditions. In this work, we have supported SnCl 2 .2H 2 O over different solid matrix (i.e., such as SiO 2 , Nb 2 O 5 and ZrO 2 ) and evaluated its catalytic activity in FFA esterifcation reactions. In this case, the reaction occurs in heterogeneous phase bringing with itself all the pertinent advantages to this rational system as the best separation of products and reuse of the catalyst. It was appraised reaction parameters such as thermal treatment temperature nature of the support; leaching test was also accomplished.