MgAl2O4 spinel was synthesized through microwave-assisted combustion method using three different fuels, including urea, glycine and glycerin. This spinel was then used as a support for MgO/MgAl2O4 nanocatalyst in order to produce biodiesel. Results of XRD, EDX, FTIR, BET, TGA, FESEM and SPSD analyses indicated that heating via microwave irradiation results in the synthesis of a catalyst of far superior characteristics for the biodiesel production reaction. Results of the conducted analyses as well as reactor test results demonstrated that the nanocatalyst synthesized using glycine and microwave irradiation outperformed the other catalysts in terms of physiochemical characteristics and catalytic performance in biodiesel production. Therefore, under moderate conditions (reaction temperature: 90 degrees C, catalyst concentration: 3 wt.%, reaction time: 3 h, and alcohol to oil molar ratio: 12), the conversion reached 92.7%. In addition, investigating reusability of the catalysts, the nanocatalyst synthesized using microwave irradiation and glycine outperformed the other catalysts when it came to triglyceride transesterification reaction. The conversion exhibited insignificant changes following six rounds of use. The presented results were indicative of the synthesis of a well favorable catalyst for the process of producing a green and valuable fuel - biodiesel. (C) 2018 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.