SUPERVISOR DECLARATION
“I hereby declare that I have read this thesis and in my opinion this report is
sufficient in terms of scope and quality for the award of the degree of
Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Plant and Maintenance)”
Signature : .......................................................
Supervisor : NURUL HANIM BINTI RAZAK
Date : .......................................................
OPTIMIZATION OF ORGANIC CANDLE GREEN
PRODUCTION FROM WASTE COOKING OIL
(EFFECT OF RATIO OF OIL CRYSTALLIZER
TO WASTE COOKING OIL)
NORMASLEHA BINTI YASIN
This report is submitted as partial requirement for the completion of
Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering (Plant and Maintenance)
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering
Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka
(JUNE 2015)
ii
DECLARATION
“I hereby declare that the work in this report is my own except for summaries and
quotations which have been duly acknowledged.”
Signature : ......................................................
Author : NORMASLEHA BINTI YASIN
Date : ......................................................
iv
ACKNOWLEDDGEMENT
First and foremost, I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to my
supervisor, Madam Nurul Hanim Binti Razak, who has supported me throughout my
thesis with her patience, knowledge, effort and encouragement. Her invaluable help
of constructive comments and suggestions throughout the experimental and thesis
works have contributed to the success of this research. Not forgotten, my
appreciation to my co-supervisor, Madam Noryani Binti Muhammad for her support
and advice on this project.
Besides, I would like to acknowledge the support of the crucial role of the
staff of Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) who allows me access to their
equipment and necessary material to complete the task need upon completing my
research. In addition, special thanks I dedicate to all my friend who giving helps and
ideas for my project. Last but not least, my deepest gratitude goes to my beloved
parents Mr. Yasin Bin Merjun and Mrs. Faridah Binti Abdullah and also to my
brother for their endless love, prayers and encouragement. Thank you very much.
v
ABSTRACT
Nowadays, the habits of dumping waste cooking oil from homes and
restaurant becomes one of the most critical problem which cause blockage and
pollution to the river and sewage. The problem happens when the management of
this waste is inherently messy and resulting in spillage and cause impacts to drainage
and water system. Thus, when the drainage is blocked, extra costs are requires for the
clean-up process of sewer overflows which could result in potential environmental
health hazards. Hence, to help in solving this problem, the idea of producing an
organic candle from waste cooking oil was proposed. Organic candle is refer to a
candle which made from natural resources comes from plants, insects and animals
waxes. As the cooking oil is made from vegetable fats, the properties are suitable to
become one of the raw material needed in producing the organic candles. Thus, the
aim for this project is to determine the optimal production capacity from waste
cooking oil by analyzing the mixture ratio of waste cooking oil and the oil
crystallizer. Generally, the experiment was conducted by adding the oil crystallizer
into the waste cooking oil. There is one type of oil crystallizer used in this
experiment which is 12-hydroxystearic acid (12HSA). The function of oil crystallizer
is to solidify the cooking oil. Moreover, the safety analysis on the impact of
combustion also conducted to ensure the soot produced during the burning of the
organic candle is safe and 100% organic.
vi
ABSTRAK
Pada masa kini, tabiat pembuangan sisa minyak masak dari rumah dan
restoran menjadi salah satu masalah yang paling kritikal yang menyebabkan
tersumbat dan pencemaran kepada sungai dan kumbahan. Masalah ini berlaku
apabila pengurusan sisa ini pada asasnya tidak kemas dan menyebabkan tumpahan
dan menyebabkan kesan kepada sistem perparitan dan air. Oleh itu, apabila saliran
tersumbat, kos tambahan yang memerlukan untuk proses pembersihan dari limpahan
pembetung yang boleh menyebabkan bahaya kesihatan alam sekitar yang berpotensi.
oleh itu, untuk membantu dalam menyelesaikan masalah ini, idea menghasilkan lilin
organik daripada sisa minyak masak telah dicadangkan. Lilin organik adalah merujuk
kepada lilin yang diperbuat daripada sumber semula jadi berasal dari tumbuh-
tumbuhan, serangga dan haiwan wax. Sebagai minyak masak itu dibuat daripada
lemak sayuran, sifat-sifat yang sesuai untuk menjadi salah satu bahan mentah yang
diperlukan dalam menghasilkan lilin organik. Oleh itu, tujuan projek ini adalah untuk
menentukan kapasiti pengeluaran yang optimum daripada sisa minyak masak dengan
menganalisa nisbah campuran sisa minyak masak dan penghablur minyak. Secara
umumnya, eksperimen telah dijalankan dengan menambah penghablur minyak ke
dalam sisa minyak masak. Terdapat satu jenis penghablur minyak yang digunakan
dalam eksperimen ini iaitu 12-hydroxystearic asid (12hsa). Fungsi penghablur
minyak adalah untuk mengukuhkan minyak masak. Selain itu, analisis keselamatan
pada kesan pembakaran juga dijalankan untuk memastikan jelaga yang dihasilkan
semasa pembakaran lilin organik adalah selamat dan 100% organik.
vii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER TITLE PAGES
DECLARATION ii
DEDICATION iii
ACKNOWLEDDGEMENT iv
ABSTRACT v
ABSTRAK vi
TABLE OF CONTENTS vii
LIST OF FIGURES xii
LIST OF TABLES xv
LIST OF EQUATIONS xvii
LIST OF APPENDICES xvii
CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 BACKGROUND 1
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT 3
1.2.1 Objectives 3
1.2.2 Scope 4
viii
CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 5
2.1 BACKGROUND OF CANDLE 5
2.1.1 How a Candle Works 7
2.1.2 Candle Soot 9
2.1.3 Candle Wicks 11
2.1.4 Incense 12
2.2 TYPES OF CANDLE AND COMPOSITION OF WAXES 14
2.2.1 Soy Wax Candle 14
2.2.2 Beeswax Candle 15
2.2.3 Paraffin Wax Candle 18
2.2.5 Palm Wax Candle 19
2.2.6 Gel Wax Candle 21
2.2.3 Summary 21
2.3 PRODUCTION OF ORGANIC CANDLE 25
2.3.1 Handmade 25
2.3.2 Manufacturing 26
2.4 COMBUSTION PRODUCT 27
2.4.1 Carbon Monoxide 27
2.4.2 Lead 28
2.4.3 Combustion of Hydrocarbon 29
ix
2.5 OIL CRYSTALLIZER 30
2.5.1 12-Hydroxystearic acid 30
2.6 ORGANIC CANDLE FROM WASTE COOKING OIL 31
2.7 SAFETY AND HEALTH ISSUE 32
CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY 33
3.1 INTRODUCTION 33
3.2 FLOW CHART 34
3.3 EXPERIMENTAL METHOD 35
3.3.1 Pilot study/ Experiment (reaction) 36
3.3.1.1 Apparatus 36
3.3.1.2 Raw Material 39
3.3.1.3 Experimental Procedure 40
3.3.2 Production Process 41
3.3.2.1 Chemical formula 41
3.3.2.1 Mixture of Oil Solidifier and Waste Cooking Oil 41
3.3.2.3 Material 42
3.3.2.4 Experiment Set Up 44
3.2.3 Combustion and Emission Analysis 45
x
CHAPTER 4 DATA AND RESULT 46
4.1 INTRODUCTION 46
4.2 RESULT 46
4.2.1 Water Content Test 46
4.2.1.1 Percentage of Water Content Removal 48
4.2.2 Free Fatty Acid Test (FFA) 50
4.2.2.1 Increment in Free Fatty Acid (FFA) 51
4.3 COMBUSTION AND EMISSION TEST 53
4.3.1 Soot and Black Carbon Test 54
4.3.2 Burning Time Test 55
4.3.3 Smell Test 56
CHAPTER 5 DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS 61
5.1 INTRODUCTION 61
5.1.1 Effect of Mixture Ratio Analysis 61
5.1.2 Combustion and Emission Analysis 66
5.1.2.1 Soot and Black Carbon Analysis 66
5.1.2.2 Burning Time Analysis 67
5.1.2.3 Smell Analysis 68
xi
CHAPTER 6 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION 76
6.1 CONCLUSION 76
6.2 RECOMMENDATION 77
REFERENCES 78
APPENDIX A Error! Bookmark not defined.
GANTT CHART OF PSM I 82
APPENDIX B 84
GANTT CHART OF PSM II 85
APPENDIX C 87
PRODUCTION OF AN ORGANIC CANDLE 89
APPENDIX D 89
APPENDIX E 90
xii
LIST OF FIGURES
NO TITLE PAGE
Figure 2.1: Flame Zones 8
Figure 2.2: Burning of candle produce soot 10
Figure 2.3: Soy wax candle 15
Figure 2.4: Beeswax candle 16
Figure 2.5: Beeswax Chemical Structure Formula 16
Figure 2.6: Raw material for bees wax candle manufacturing 17
Figure 2.7: Paraffin Wax Chemical Structure Formula 18
Figure 2.8: Raw materials for paraffin wax candle manufacturing 19
Figure 2.9: Palm wax candle 20
Figure 2.10: Gel wax candle 21
Figure 2.11: Handmade Candles 25
Figure 2.12: Manufacturing of candle by industry 26
Figure 2.13: 12-Hyroxystearic acid (12HSA) 30
Figure 3.1: Flow chart of overall project flow 34
Figure 3.2: Chart of experimental method process 35
Figure 3.3: Experiment set up 44
Figure 3.4: Organic candle 45
xiii
Figure 4.1: FluidScan of water content 47
Figure 4.2: FluidScan of free fatty acid 50
Figure 4.3: Organic candles 53
Figure 4.4: Soot and Black Carbon Test Before Test 54
Figure 4.5: Soot and Black Carbon Test After Test 54
Figure 4.6: Organic candle 55
Figure 4.7: Paraffin candle 55
Figure 4.8: Burning process 56
Figure 4.9: Organic candle 56
Figure 4.10: Paraffin candle 56
Figure 5.1: Percentage of water content removal 62
Figure 5.2: Increment of free fatty acid 64
Figure 5.3: Soot and Black Carbon Analysis Before Test 66
Figure 5.4: Soot and Black Carbon Analysis After Test 66
Figure 5.5: Organic candle 67
Figure 5.6: Paraffin candle 68
Figure 5.7: Percentage of general knowledge about an organic candle 69
Figure 5.8: Percentage of general knowledge on candle from cooking oil 70
Figure 5.9: Percentage level for quality of paraffin and organic candle 71
Figure 5.10: Percentage of smells produce from paraffin candle 72
xiv
Figure 5.11: Percentage of smells produce from organic candle 73
Figure 5.12: Percentage of possibilities to market the organic candle 74
Figure 5.13: Percentage of potential finish product 75
xv
LIST OF TABLES
NO TITLE PAGE
Table 2.1: Beeswax mixture 17
Table 2.2: Advantages and Disadvantages of the Candle 22
Table 3.1: Apparatus for an experiment 36
Table 3.2: Raw material for an experiment 39
Table 3.3: Material in production of organic candle 42
Table 4.1: Water content of waste cooking oil samples 48
Table 4.2: Percentage of water content removal 49
Table 4.3: Free fatty acid (FFA) of waste cooking oil samples 51
Table 4.4: Increment of Free fatty acid (FFA) of waste cooking oil samples 52
Table 4.5: Percentage of general knowledge about an organic candle 57
Table 4.6: Percentage of general knowledge candle made of waste cooking oil 57
Table 4.7: Comparison of the quality for paraffin and organic candle 58
Table 4.8: Percentage of smells produce from paraffin wax candle 58
Table 4.9: Percentage of smells produce from organic candle 59
Table 4.10: Percentage of possibilities to market the organic candle 59
Table 4.11: Targeted market for potential finish product 60
xvi
LIST OF EQUATIONS
NO TITLE PAGE
Equation 2.1: Complete combustion of hydrocarbon 29
Equation 2.2: Incomplete combustion of hydrocarbon 29
Equation 3.1: Chemical formula 41
Equation 4.1: Percentage of Water Content Removal 48
Equation 4.2: Example Calculation of Water Content Removal 49
Equation 4.3: Increment in Free Fatty Acid (FFA) 51
Equation 4.4: Example Calculation of Free Fatty Acid (FFA) 52
xvii
LIST OF APPENDICES
NO TITLE PAGE
Appendix A: Gantt chart of PSM I 81
Appendix B: Gantt chart of PSM II 84
Appendix C: Production of an Organic Candle 87
Appendix D: Survey Form 89
Appendix E: Material Safety Data Sheet of 12-Hydroxystearic Act 90
1
CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
This chapter provides the background of the research study, problem
statement, objectives, scope and research outline.
1.1 BACKGROUND
Nowadays, to get an excellent presentation of food, oil frying method is used
due to its contribution of good taste, attractive colour and better presentation.
However, as the popularity of this method increases, the accumulation of waste
generated from cooking oil also increases. It was reported that waste cooking oil is
extensively produced all over the world. European Union produces around 700,000-
1,000,000 tonnes waste cooking oil annually, inclusive of the oils from snack food
and French fries. It was estimated that there were 40,000 tonnes per year of waste
cooking oil produced in Asia countries such as China, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand,
Hong Kong and India (Hanisah et al., 2013).
2
The uses of cooking oil at home, restaurant or other related industry need
proper management because fat and grease contains in waste cooking oil can cause a
great problems when it is disposed of down the kitchen sinks and drain. In addition,
when these elements enter rainwater pipes or gullies, it sticks to the inner lining of
drainage pipes and restricts the wastewater flow causing the pipes to block. In more
severe cases, the waste cooking oil flow into the river and streams and causing
pollution and harm to aquatic life.
According to Kabir et al. (2014), discharge of waste cooking oil into waters
change the oxygenation process and destroy the aquatic lives in the marine
environment. This problem occurs when a layer of discharge oil covered the water
surface and prevents oxygen dissolution. Therefore, when the by-products of oil
degradation mixed with water, it increases the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and
contaminates the water to be toxic. As a result, the aquatic lives absorbed poisonous
compounds from the polluted water and later returned to human through food chain.
In addition, several operation and maintenance problems also occur when the
waste cooking oil emptied into drainage system. The effect starts when the waste
cooking oil gathers and solidifies inside the drainage system to deny the sewage from
flowing freely to the wastewater treatment plant. When the sewage is blocked, extra
costs are requires for the clean-up process of sewer overflows which could result in
potential environmental health hazards (Kabir et al., 2014).
As a conclusion, in order to overcome the problem, the government should
supports on recycling the waste cooking oil as it reduces the dependency on landfill
sites and the use of fossil fuels for energy generation. In addition, by recycling the
waste cooking oil, it also helps to safe environment and human health as well as
reducing the major causes of costly sewer maintenance.
3
1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT
The habits of dumping waste cooking oil down the sink or drains can cause
waste to congeal and block public sewers. In addition, the polluted sewage then spill
into rivers and streams. Untreated sewage effluent and waste oil in the water causes
dissolved oxygen level to drop drastically, thus the sewage fungus starts to cover the
water like a blanket and in more severe case, the river can no longer support living
organism around the water. The idea of using waste cooking oil to make an organic
candle not only help to a safer environment but it also gives great benefits to human.
Nowadays people tend to use organic candles compared to paraffin wax candles.
Truly, the paraffin wax candle releases carcinogenic chemicals when burned and the
soot or fume produced are similar to that released from a diesel engine and it can
be as dangerous as a cigarette smoke. Finally, this situation can contribute to cancer
and serious respiratory issues like asthma.
1.2.1 Objectives
a) To study the production process of making an organic candle from
waste cooking oil and oil crystallizer.
b) To determine the optimal production capacity of organic candles from
waste cooking oil by analyzing the mixture ratio of waste cooking oil
and the oil crystallizer.
c) To evaluate the safety analysis on the impact of combustion and
emission to human and environment by analyzing the soot and black
carbon release, burning time and smell from the organic candles.
4
1.2.2 Scope
The project is mainly focused on how waste cooking oil can be optimized to
be recycled as an organic candle. An organic crystallizer will be used to solidify the
cooking oil. Hence, the study and analysis on the crystallizer will be executed so that
the ratio of the mixture is at optimum level. Next, the safety and impact of
combustion of this candle will be evaluated to ensure that the organic candle is safe
for human and environment.
5
CHAPTER 2
LITERATURE REVIEW
This chapter described the existing case study and related information. The
history of candles making production as well as candle properties such as wicks,
incense, combustion product, safety and health will be discussed clearly in this
section.
2.1 BACKGROUND OF CANDLE
According to Faraday (1861), in early history of candles development,
besides their liturgical relevance, candles were predominantly used as a source of
light for over 5,000 years. One of the first inventions in human history was candle
and the first “wicks” candles were created in Ancient Rome. Candle making became
a popular occupation in the Middle Ages as evidenced by the creation of many
candle makers guilds throughout Europe. Basically, candle making depends on the
natural resources available to that region. The art of candle making has remained
amazingly similar to the original production even though the materials that
encompass a candle have changed through the years.
6
In the early of Roman and Egyptian times, candles originally were made up
from tallow which was extracted from cattle and sheep which burned poorly and
unfortunately producing quite an unpleasant smell. Upon this happen, the
introduction of candles made from beeswax were greatly accepted due to structure of
beeswax which burned cleanly and did not omit any odours and produce less smoke.
However, because beeswax was a much scarcer resource than tallow, it became more
of a candle for the opulent, and tallow was the common household candle.
Willhoft and Horn (2000) stated that in early Chinese candles were made up
from an indigenous insect that was combined with seeds. The candles have been
molded in paper tubes and the wick was made from rolled rice paper. In Japan,
candles were made of wax extracted from tree nuts while in India fruit of the
cinnamon tree was boiled to make candle wax. Nevertheless, candles starts to gained
fragrance and strength in the middle of 1600s when bayberry wax was discovered by
the settlers around Cape Cod Bay.
The bayberry bush grows wild in bogs and costal swamplands from New
England to Louisiana. Usually, women and children gathered and dumped the
grayish white berries into a boiling pot and they skimmed the aromatic greenish gray
wax and added it to the tallow. Bayberry wax has a higher melting point than tallow
and it makes the candles less prone to bending. However the process of making the
bayberry wax was very tedious and tiresome
In the middle of 1700s, the first large scale improvement in candle making
was brought via a by-product of America’s fledgling whaling industry. The whale
men discovered that spermaceti oil from the head cavity of a sperm whale contains a
waxy component. It became the accepted standard for photometry because when it is
rendered into wax, the spermaceti hardened, burned brightly and smells better than
tallow and beeswax. Unfortunately, because of the prices is expensive, only the
affluent could afford them (Wikipedia.com).