Abstract:
Coconut husk (Cocos nucifera L.) is one of the most abundant parts obtained from
coconut trees and is an underutilized waste material. Coconut husk ash contains
silica, which has the potential to act as a heterogeneous acid catalyst. This
research aims to synthesize biodiesel using waste cooking oil as the feedstock and
employing coconut husk as a catalyst in the synthesis process. The catalyst used is
SiO2 impregnated with sulfuric acid. The weight variation of the catalyst used is
5, 7, and 10wt% at a temperature of 60oC with a molar ratio of oil to methanol of
1:12. The research results indicate that a maximum yield of 35.5% biodiesel was
obtained with a catalyst weight of 10wt%. However, the characteristics of the
produced biodiesel do not yet meet the SNI 7182-2015 standards concerning
density and viscosity.
