ABSTRACT
Esterication is a chemical reaction in which two reactants, typically alcohol and an acid, form an ester as a reaction product. Biodiesel processing usually refers to transesterication (also called alcoholysis), which involves changing one ester (oil or fat) into another (alkyl ester). Alkyl esters are also termed biodiesel. Esterication can also refer to the reaction of free fatty acids (FFAs; fatty acid chains formed by the breakdown of conventional oil triglyceride molecules) with alcohol or glycerol to form the alkyl ester biodiesel. This chapter reviews esterication as a concept for biodiesel production, including both strict esterication and the transesterication of oils and fats.
