Preparation of Ni/Zeolite as esterification catalyst in biodiesel production based on off-grade crude palm oil

This aim of this research is preparation to prepare catalyst of 0% Ni/Zeolite, 5% Ni/Zeolite, and 10% Ni/Zeolite. Catalyst of Ni/Zeolite was prepared by impregnation method. Biodiesel production was conducted by 2 steps, the first step was esterification using 3 types of catalyst 0% Ni/Zeolite, 5% Ni/Zeolite, and 10% Ni/Zeolite. The second step was trans-esterification using NaOH catalyst. The catalyst were characterized by FTIR to identify functional group and XRD to identify crystallinity. The acidity of catalyst was determined by ammonia adsorption. The catalyst can reduce FFA content in CPO that influence increasing of yield biodiesel production. The formation of biodiesel was confirmed by the GCMS analysis that identified the methyl ester produced. The highest yield of biodiesel production was obtained using 5% Ni/Zeolite catalyst. Based on physical analysis of biodiesel which includes density, acid number, and water content, biodiesel synthesized from palm oil off grade has qualified the Indonesian National Standard for biodiesel.