Bio-affinity mediated immobilization of lipase onto magnetic cellulose nanospheres for high yield biodiesel in one time addition of methanol

•GSlip-CBD-MCNS was used to obtaining high yield of biodiesel from palm oil.•GSlip-CBD-MCNS showed high tolerance to methanol and temperature.•98% of biodiesel was obtained in 4 h in one step addition of methanol.•The biocatalyst was highly reusable with 94% of biodiesel until 8th cycle.•Preparation of biocatalyst was green synthesis. To synthesis biodiesel from palm oil in one-time addition of methanol and solvent-free medium using CBD fused with C-terminal of lipase from G. stearothermophilus (GSlip-CBD) was immobilized onto magnetic cellulose nanosphere (MCNS). The immobilized matrix traits were preconceived by FT-IR, TEM and XRD. Perceptible biodiesel yield 98 and 73% was synthesized by GSlip-CBD-MCNS in 4 h and GSlip-MCNS in 6 h under the optimized conditions of oil:methanol ratio (1:3.5), temperature (55 and 50 °C) and enzyme loading (15 U). Intriguingly, the operational stability of GSlip-CBD-MCNS was an easily attainable owing to the magnetic properties and could be reused up to 8th and19th cycles with 94 and 45% of biodiesel yield respectively, compared to GSlip-MCNS. Thus GSlip-CBD-MCNS could be a potential biocatalyst for higher yield of biodiesel and reusability in one step addition of methanol.