Communications in Science and Technology
Vol 11 No 1 (2026)

Global research trends in biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) using CaO, MgO, and TiO2 heterogeneous catalysts: a bibliometric analysis (2015-2025)

Sri Rezki Mardiah Syam (Department of Chemical Engineering, Diponegoro University, Semarang 50275, Indonesia)
Budiyono Budiyono (Department of Chemical Engineering, Diponegoro University, Semarang 50275, Indonesia)
Hadiyanto Hadiyanto (Department of Chemical Engineering, Diponegoro University, Semarang 50275, Indonesia)



Article Info

Publish Date
02 Jul 2026

Abstract

This bibliometric study provides a comprehensive of global research on biodiesel production from palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) using heterogeneous CaO, MgO, and TiO2 catalysts during the period of 2015–2025. A total of 179 Scopus-indexed documents were analyzed by means of VOSviewer to examine publication trends, citation impact, co-authorship networks, and keyword co-occurrence. It is evident that Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia dominate both the publications and citations, reflecting their dominant palm oil production capacity. A substantial proportion of publications is concentrated on high-impact journals in the fields of energy and chemical engineering. A keyword clustering analysis reveals five main themes: process optimization, catalyst synthesis (including waste-derived CaO), feedstock diversification, activation/intensification techniques, and sustainability. The results demonstrate a predominance of laboratory-scale studies employing waste-based oxides, with a paucity of research addressing pilot-scale implementation, techno-economic assessment, and life cycle analysis. The findings provide a strategic roadmap for researchers, policymakers, and industry stakeholders to prioritize future developments in PFAD-based biodiesel production, particularly in catalyst scale-up, techno-economic assessment, and sustainable process integration. The primary benefit of this study is its capacity to systematically consolidate a decade of disparate research into a structured analytical framework, thereby enabling more targeted investment in under-explored areas such as pilot-scale implementation and life cycle analysis. In turn, this is expected to accelerate the transition of PFAD-based biodiesel from laboratory research to industrial application.

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Journal Info

Abbrev

cst

Publisher

Subject

Engineering

Description

Communication in Science and Technology [p-ISSN 2502-9258 | e-ISSN 2502-9266] is an international open access journal devoted to various disciplines including social science, natural science, medicine, technology and engineering. CST publishes research articles, reviews and letters in all areas of ...