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Abstract
An economic feasibility study on four batch processes for the production of biodiesel
ranging from 1452 tonnes/year (5000 l/day) to 14,520 tonnes/year (50,000 l/day) is
conducted. The four processes assessed are the (1) KOH-W process, characterized by
a homogeneous KOH catalyst and hot water purification process; (2) KOH-D process,
characterized by a homogeneous KOH catalyst and vacuum FAME distillation process;
(3) CaO-W process, characterized by a heterogeneous CaO catalyst and hot water purification
process; and (4) CaO-D process, characterized by a heterogeneous CaO catalyst and
vacuum FAME distillation process. The costs of the waste cooking oil, fixed costs,
and manufacturing costs for producing 7260 tonnes/year (25,000 l/day) of biodiesel
by means of the four processes are estimated to be $248-256, $194-232, and $584-641
per tonne of biodiesel, respectively. Among the four processes, the manufacturing
costs involved in the CaO-W process are the lowest, in the range from 1452 tonnes/year
to 14,520 tonnes/year.