Biodiesel production from tomato seed by transesterification with Alkaline and ‘Green’ catalysts: Simulation and discussion

The aim of this work is to model a more environmental-friendly production of biodiesel from tomato seed oil to assess the feasibility of using an alternative catalyst. The AspenPlus® software is used to this end. Different cases are evaluated and compared, by changing the catalyst and by considering the additional production of high purity glycerol and potassium phosphate. Tomato seed oil obtained from tomato pomace coming from local industries, methanol and catalyst are considered as raw materials. Based on literature data, a methyl-esters yield formulation is developed and the catalytic transesterification reaction implemented in a simulated reactor, while methanol is recovered by distillation and recycled to the reactor. The necessary distillation towers are designed. All the mass and energy balances were set up for the whole process. The energy return of investment (EROI) was determined by considering the energy for harvesting and that for producing biodiesel. Results show that tomato seed oil can be a feasible alternative for biodiesel production.