Journal of Energy Bioscience 2024, Vol.15, No.5, 289-300 http://bioscipublisher.com/index.php/jeb 290 This study aims to explore the microbial processes involved in the conversion of kitchen waste into biodiesel, with a focus on analyzing the processes and their potential advantages. The research will examine the efficiency of different microbial strains in lipid accumulation and analyze the transesterification process of these lipids into biodiesel, striving to contribute to the development of sustainable waste-to-energy technologies. The scope of the study includes a review of existing methods, experimental results, and a discussion on the scalability and industrial applicability of the proposed process. 2 Characteristics of Kitchen Waste 2.1 Composition of kitchen waste Kitchen waste (KW) is a significant component of municipal solid waste, characterized by high moisture content, organic matter, and variability in its chemical composition. Studies have shown that KW typically contains a mix of food residues, including fats, oils, and grease (FOG), proteins, carbohydrates, and minerals. For instance, household kitchen waste (HH) and kitchen waste from Chinese restaurants (CR) have been found to have higher crude protein content (26%) and considerable amounts of minerals, making them nutritionally suitable for various recycling processes (Ho and Chu, 2018). Additionally, the lipid content in waste cooking oils (WCOs) ranges from 73% to 84.5%, with significant amounts of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids (Sharma et al., 2021). 2.2 Suitability of kitchen waste for biodiesel production Kitchen waste, particularly waste cooking oils and FOG, is highly suitable for biodiesel production due to its high lipid content and the presence of various fatty acids. The diverse nature of fatty acids in WCOs, such as C16 and C18, makes them ideal candidates for biodiesel production, complying with international standards (Sharma et al., 2021) (Figure 1). Moreover, FOG-derived biodiesel has shown better characteristics concerning oxidative stability, flash point, cetane number, and total emissions compared to other feedstocks (Abomohra et al., 2020). The economic analysis also supports the use of FOG as a cost-effective alternative to conventional biodiesel feedstocks. Figure 1 Waste cooking oils as feedstocks for biodiesel production: characterization and conversion process (Adapted from Sharma et al., 2021)
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