Moringa Leaves (Moringa Oleifera) Potential as Green Catalyst for Biodiesel Production

Moringa plant's value can be improved by utilizing the leaves as green catalyst. This research aimed to examine moringa leaves as green catalyst for transesterification of coconut oil to produce biodiesel. Dry moringa leaf powder was calcined for 3 hours at 500 degrees C to make moringa leaf ash. Moringa leaf ash was characterized by using Scanning Electron Microscopy - Energy Dispersive X-Ray Spectroscopy ( SEM-EDX). The analysis result showed that moringa leaf ash contains metal oxide such as potassium oxide (K2O) and calcium oxide (CaO) which act as catalyst in biodiesel production. Transesterification was carried out with coconut oil to methanol molar ratio of 1 : 9 and catalyst loading of 2% by weight. The variables observed in this study were the effect of reaction temperature and time on biodiesel yield. The best yield obtained was 98.18% at 60 degrees C and reaction time of 150 minutes. These results confirmed that moringa leaf ash can be utilized as green catalyst for synthesizing biodiesel.