Patent ID: 8895764

Claim:
A heterogeneous catalyst system comprising: a mixture of amorphous zinc oxide and zinc oxide nanocrystals, the zinc nanocrystals having a mean grain size between about 20 and 80 nanometers with at least one of the nanocrystals having a crystal face that includes a mesopore having a diameter of about 5 to 15 nanometers; and a lanthanum oxide, wherein the combination of the zinc oxide mixture and the lanthanum oxide exhibits a Zn:La bulk molar ratio between about 9.0:1.0 and 1.0:1.0 and having a first surface site and a second surface site, the first surface site capable of catalyzing a transesterification reaction of triglyceride with an alcohol and the second surface site capable of catalyzing a esterification reaction of a fatty acid with an alcohol.