PREPARATION AND PROPERTIES OF METHYL-ESTERS OF BEEF TALLOW

Tallow methyl esters were prepared fi-om edible beef tallow using the process of esterification. The presence of mono-, di- and triglyceride s and free fatty acids were determined by thin-layer chromatography (T LC). Gas chromatography (GC) was used to determine the fatty acid comp ositions of raw, beef tallow and its esters. Some important physical a nd fuel properties, including specific gravity, API gravity, melting p oint, cloud point, pour point, distillation properties, calculated cet ane index (CCI) and energy content, were determined for tallow methyl esters and their blends with ethanol in different ratios ranging from 100:0 to 55:45% (v/v) of tallow methyl esters and ethanol TLC analyses showed that methyl esters of beef tallow were free from impurities. T he major constituents observed by GC were palmitic acid (16:0), steari c acid (18:0) and oleic acid (18:1). The melting point, cloud point, p our point, specific gravity and CCI decreased with increased ethanol c ontent. The energy content of the methyl esters was 12% less than No.2 diesel fuel and it decreased with increases in ethanol content of the blends. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd.