How do I make Biodiesel?

If you have the idea that you can fuel your car by simply filling your gas tank with used cooking oil, you’re going to be sorely disappointed. While it is possible to power a vehicle using only cooking oil, it has to be very high quality and pure – and your vehicle needs to have some extensive work done before it can operate on this fuel. One thing a lot of people don’t get about biodiesel is that unless you’ve modified your engine, this alternative fuel is made for compression/combustion engines, not the regular internal combustion engines used in most vehicles. Biodiesel does not have the same levels of octane as does gasoline.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t power your car with biodiesel, however. It’s a fuel which is already widely used for a number of different applications. It can be used as the sole source of fuel for a vehicle or to partially replace the used of petroleum-based fuels. Many cities use biodiesel to power buses in their mass transit systems as well as school bus fleets, taxis and other vehicles.

Many government fleets are using biodiesel fuel, and many homes are heated with this fuel. It is highly regarded in the farming community as both a fuel source, and a cash income domestically, as well as abroad. Many who regularly implement biodiesel usage for there vehicles, are rewarded for helping the environment, by tax credits, or other compensations. There are also interests in using boidiesel for aircraft, trains, and generators that may have to stop running due to exhaust restrictions in major metropolitan areas.

If you’re interesting in making biodiesel fuel you can easily find detailed instructions in many books and from a number of different websites; what you’ll read here is only the basics. It’s possible to make your own biodiesel, but it’s important to do so with careful attention to the instructions provided – if the ingredients are not in the right proportion, you’ll be left with fuel which is either too thick or thin to use. Typically, the best mixture is around 20% oil to 80% other ingredients.

The first part of the process of making biodiesel is to heat your waste oil to a temperature of at least 130 degrees (Fahrenheit). Next, you’ll need to titrate your oil to find out the concentration of free fatty acids; there are often a great deal of these left behind in used restaurant oil). Following this, the oil is combined with a pre-mixed tester solution. You can visit any number of websites about making biofuels to learn the details of this process.

Because methanol and used cooking oil won’t combine on their own, a catalyst is usually involved, commonly in the form of lye. Lye and methanol are combined separately, and when the oil is ready, combined together and mixed well. When this mixing is done, there are byproducts such as glycerin, that need to be removed. Once these have been separated, then the biodeisel goes through a wash cycle, to get rid of any left over impurities. Once the water has done it’s job, it is taken out and the biodeisel is transferred to a storage container, so that it has a chance to dry, meaning that any remaining water evaporated, and then it is ready to use. While there are many different variations, this is the basic operation and process be which all biodeisel fuel is made. It can be made using basic ingredients, which can mostly be found readily available. There are more intricate details on what ingredients are needed, what equipment and tools are needed, as well as any engine modifications that may need to be required.

One thing you’ll notice once you start using biodiesel to fuel your vehicle is that your filters will become quickly. This is nothing to be alarmed about and is actually a good thing – the cleaner biodiesel fuel actually helps to eliminate deposits left behind from the use of conventional fuels. Once these residues have been eliminated, your engine will actually run more efficiently!

Biodiesel began as an extremely marginal energy source when Rudolf Diesel began producing fuel from rancid peanuts. Today, it is a widely used and increasingly common source of energy – once, biodiesel was prohibitively expensive to produce, especially compared to cheaper fossil fuels. Biodiesel began to make a comeback starting in the 1970s as people came to realize that petroleum wasn’t an inexhaustible resource and the advancements made in biodiesel production technologies have made it an inexpensive renewable energy source. It’s also a fuel whose properties (far less pollution than fossil fuels) makes it a good fit for the increasing awareness on the part of the public of the damage done to the environment through the use of petroleum and other fossil fuels.

There are many sites on line that can help you find what you are looking for. There are a wide variety of kits for making your own biodiesel fuel, which have many of the ingredients needed all in one and ready to be put together. These also include the equipment and tools that are needed and how to get a hold of some of the more complicated ingredients.

Hopefully this has helped to spark an interest in some of you and made others at least aware more. With new information and technologies being developed, it would not be surprising to find that the next important breakthrough from some back yard refinery, and not in a lab.

WVO Designs was created for Biofuel enthusiasts. Free information is available as well as products for WVO Conversion, WVO Filtering, WVO Centrifuge. WVOdesigns.com is also a supplier of Pureflow Technologies Raptor Pump and AirDog Fuel Systems.

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