Feasibility study of biodiesel production using lipids of Hermetia illucens larva fed with organic waste

Hermetia illucens larvae by nature are a decomposer which fed on organic wastes. This study explores the potential of producing biodiesel using lipids from H. illucens larvae. Three types of organic wastes (sewage sludge, fruit waste and palm decanter cake from oil palm mill) were selected based on considerable generation and disposal concern in the area of study as well as lack of investigations as feed for Hermetia illucens larvae in current literatures. Growth rate of the larvae was determined with studying the changes in the biomass per day. H. illucens larvae fed with fruit waste and palm decanter cake have shown growth rates of 0.52 ± 0.02 and 0.23 ± 0.09 g d-1, respectively. No positive sign of growth were observed in the larvae fed with treated sewage sludge (-0.04 ± 0.01 g d-1). Biodiesel as fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) was synthesized by transesterification of the larvae lipid using sulphuric acid as catalyst in methanol. FAME produced was ascertained using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy and GC-MS. The main compositions of fatty acid were found to be C12:0, C16:0 and C18:1n9c. Fatty acid composition of C12:0 fed with fruit waste, sewage sludge and palm decanter was found to be most abundant in the larvae lipid. The amount of C12:0 obtained was 76.13, 58.31 and 48.06, respectively. In addition, fatty acid of C16:0 was attained at 16.48 and 25.48 fed with sewage sludge and palm decanter, respectively. Based on the findings, FAME derived from larvae lipids is feasible to be used for biodiesel production. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.