Sweet almond (Prunus amygdalus “dulcis”) seeds as a potential feedstock for Nigerian Biodiesel Automotive Project

Abstract

This work presents sweet almond (Prunus amygdalus “dulcis”) seed oil (SASO) as a non-conventional feedstock for the preparation of biodiesel in Nigeria, rather than the traditional oils of palm, groundnut and palm kernel. SASO was extracted via the solvent method, pretreated to reduce the acid value, and transesterified using methanol (solvent) and sodium hydroxide (catalyst). The oil content and acid value of SASO were 51.45 ± 3.92% and 1.07 mg KOH/g, respectively. The fatty acid composition of SASO reveals the predominance of oleic acid (69.7%), linoleic acid (18.2%) and palmitic acid (9.3%). Specific fuel properties of sweet almond oil methyl esters (SAOME) were determined using standard test methods and were found to satisfy both EN 14214 and ASTM D6751 biodiesel standards; the cold flow properties were particularly outstanding (cloud point; -3ºC and pour point; -9ºC). SASO appears to offer great promise as a potential feedstock for biodiesel production in Nigeria.