2 Liter Bottle Biodiesel 1.Warm 1 liter of oil to no more than 130F in glass container, 2.Mix together 220 methanol and 8 grams KOH plus extra as determined by titration 3.OR 5 grams NaOH plus extra as determined by titration 4.When catalyst is completely dissolved in methanol, mix the oil and the “methoxide” together and agitate for a few minutes (test batches) or 1-2 hours for large batches. 5.Let it settle for 8 hours before performing a wash, or longer. 6.Remove glycerol layer carefully. Do not get any glycerol into your wash tank.
#1 Biodiesel Weighing out KOH Must measure 8 grams + amount from titration
#2 Biodiesel Measure 220 mL of methanol Add KOH and mix throughly
#3 Biodiesel Heat vegetable oil
#3 Biodiesel Be careful not to exceed 65° C This is the flash point and there will be an explosion
#4 Biodiesel Put warm VO in a two liter bottle Add methanol and KOH to the bottle Agitate this test batch for a few minutes Let sit overnight
Day 2 Results Darker color Due to not enough KOH catalyst Can be reprocessed Bad Oil
Day 2 Results Good OilTop layer: good fuel Bottom: glycerin
#4 Biodiesel Drain the bottom layer of glycerin It is better to overflow and empty some biodiesel, than to leave some glycerin
Really Bad Sample Used NaOH catalyst instead of KOH Very thick and almost solid
Quality Tests 1.Test for water 2.Re-process Test
Water Test Water is BAD Causes engine problems and clogs injectors There are 2 water tests 1.Heating 2.Weighing
Heating Water Test Crackle Test Heat biodiesel fuel to 212° F If you see bubbles, like in the picture, than you know there is water in your oil
Weighing Water Test Weigh a container of oil Boil off all the water (ie heat till it stops bubbling) Weigh it again. The difference is the water content.
Dewater (option 1) 1. Heat in high heat (240F or higher) until it stops bubbling/steaming. 2.This is easier if your container is flat, and is open to the atmosphere (ie it doesn’t work well in sealed Appleseed reactors, not to mention that water heaters shouldn’t allow your temperature to go up to 240F!)
Dewater (option 2) ‘heat and let settle’ method 1.Filter the oil to get water-retaining starches out 2.Warm to 140F, keep it there in an insulated container (such as reactor or an INSULATED pre-heat tank) for a day or two, retaining heat as much as possible. Don’t let it cool and then re-heat it as the heating creates convection currents that stir the water back into the oil. Lower wattage of heating elements will cut down on convection currents that form when a high-power heating element turns on. 3.Filters for oil (only necessary if you need to dewater): –Bag filters from SVO conversion suppliers, utahbiodiesel.com or b100supply.com, or McMaster-Carr (mcmaster.com). –Old blue jeans legs sewed shut on the bottom to form a washable bag filter, and suspended over a barrel or tank. –Screens to get big chunks out of oil if you don’t dewater- –Windowscreen ‘balloon’ wrapped around your collection pump stinger (intake pipe) and secured with zip tie –Windowscreen secured to a barrel or bucket that you pour oil through –Old bedsheets (thrift stores might give you worn ones they don’t want to sell) secured to barrel, oil is poured through the cloth. This filters fairly well. Throw the cloth away when finished, make sure you don’t let oily cloth sit bunched up in the trash - avoid possibility of spontaneous combustion (ie oily rag dangers).
Quality Test 3/27 Tests for triglycerides (oil) Not for monoglycerides and diglycerides Tells you if you must reprocess
monoglyceridediglyceridetriglyceride
Quality 3/27 Test 1.Add 3 parts biodiesel to 27 parts methanol in a sealable vial. (225 ml methanol and 25 ml biodiesel ) 2.Be very precise with measurements if using these small amounts. 3.Look for particles in the vial and/or cloudy, if present your sample failed, reprocess 4.Want sample to be clear
27 ml of methanol
Sample of Biodiesel
3 ml of biodiesel
Mix 3/27 in Vial
Results 2 different fuels tested Left: cloudy Right: Clear
Results See small layer on bottom
Quality 3/27 Test