Enzymatic biodiesel production: Technical and economical considerations

TLDR

Enzymatic conversion of oils and fats to biodiesel is technically feasible, yet commercial adoption is limited by suboptimal process design, scarce cost‑effective enzymes, and inadequate enzyme reuse, though recent immobilization advances suggest potential cost parity with chemical methods. The study reviews enzymatic biodiesel production, emphasizing process design and economic aspects. It analyzes process design and economic factors influencing enzymatic biodiesel production.

Abstract

Abstract It is well documented in the literature that enzymatic processing of oils and fats for biodiesel is technically feasible. However, with very few exceptions, enzyme technology is not currently used in commercial‐scale biodiesel production. This is mainly due to non‐optimized process design and a lack of available cost‐effective enzymes. The technology to re‐use enzymes has typically proven insufficient for the processes to be competitive. However, literature data documenting the productivity of enzymatic biodiesel together with the development of new immobilization technology indicates that enzyme catalysts can become cost effective compared to chemical processing. This work reviews the enzymatic processing of oils and fats into biodiesel with focus on process design and economy.