PVA supported catalytic membranes obtained by γ-irradiation for biodiesel production

PVA supported catalytic membranes have been synthesized by mutual gamma-irradiation method using adipic acid (AA) and succinic acid (SA) as crosslinkers and a commercial ion exchange resin as catalyst. These membranes were tested as catalyst under batch conditions in esterification reaction of lauric acid to methyl laurate aiming biodiesel production. The effect of different synthesis parameters such as crosslinker, crosslinker's concentration and absorbed dose on membranes' physical-chemical properties and catalytic activity was studied. Results demonstrated that PVA supported resin membranes are effective catalysts in the lauric acid esterification reaction. Also showed that PVA-SA membranes exhibit the better catalytic properties and, within the range of conditions studied, an increase in the gamma-radiation dose leads to a slight increase of membranes' catalytic activity. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.