Comprehensive Biodiesel Brewing Instructions

[dzzz]

...............

I wonder how close the algae fuel is for any sort of usable production?

There are certainly companies working on it. Last I heard a source of CO2 for large scale production was one of the big issue.

Biodiesel from waste oil isn't really an environmental improvement as the best use is just to burn it in place of fossil fuels. Bio-engineered algae seems to have the best potential now that we're getting past the bad idea of crops as fuel.

Thorium reactors as a safer alternative to uranium are being looked at more seriously. In the US I'm sure were going to need to build a lot of nuclear or natural gas power plants.

 

[Metcalf]

The ultra-cold weather perma-flow biodiesel system required A LOT of methanol. It doesn't use much, but you have to be able to distill a lot of methanol from the cold weather biodiesel.

I honestly think a mildly heated fuel system might be a much easier way to deal with cold weather biodiesel issues.

The next experiment I want to do is with supercritical fluids. You can combine methanol/ethanol and vegetable oil under pressure and heat WITHOUT any catalyst. The process time is only about 40 minutes for 99% conversion. The process is also much more tolerant of water. It could be an interesting way to make biodiesel without having to use any caustic chemicals.....you could use ethanol and VO only.

 

[dzzz]

One "expo" aspect is that Espar says their heaters don't like biodiesel. Sometimes they don't even like diesel.

 

[Scenic WonderRunner]

The ultra-cold weather perma-flow biodiesel system required A LOT of methanol. It doesn't use much, but you have to be able to distill a lot of methanol from the cold weather biodiesel.

I honestly think a mildly heated fuel system might be a much easier way to deal with cold weather biodiesel issues.

The next experiment I want to do is with supercritical fluids. You can combine methanol/ethanol and vegetable oil under pressure and heat WITHOUT any catalyst. The process time is only about 40 minutes for 99% conversion. The process is also much more tolerant of water. It could be an interesting way to make biodiesel without having to use any caustic chemicals.....you could use ethanol and VO only.

The heated system idea.....


I've been considering getting a 1970's or mid 1980's Mercedes 240D or 300D as a daily driver and long road trip car. I've been trying to figure out how I can just use the 50 gallon tank in the trunk and go, without having to mix chemicals, etc. (still learning). On a long road trip you don't have the pleasure of a home brew station.

Here are a couple of sites I have been studying recently. Both seem to use a heater in the tank, and it seems like they just filter and go if I'm reading this right. If you needed to add chemicals, could you just add the right amount to your 50 gallon tank in your trunk and let the driving/shaking mix it?


Biodiesel Benz
Case study in converting a diesel auto to run on vegetable oil....



Converting a Diesel to Run on Vegetable Oil....




.

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

One "expo" aspect is that Espar says their heaters don't like biodiesel. Sometimes they don't even like diesel.

Correct, most furnace type systems don't like biodiesel because the flashpoint is so much higher (I believe technically considered non-flammable). You can use up to B20 pretty safely in anything like this including traditional furnaces.

Also again biodiesel is really time consuming and it seldom worth it, which I think I stated earlier, at least from a financial perspective usually. I can buy biodiesel much cheaper that is either extremely high quality home brew or commercial biodiesel cheaper than diesel fuel here - if it helps...

thanks,
Andre

 

[Metcalf]

I'm continuing my research into both supercritical ethanol biodiesel production as well as into the Urea cold weather biodiesel process.....

I'm bummed that I can't get biodiesel at the pump here in Durango. At one time you could, but not anymore. I would think for such a 'green' town it would be available in some capacity. I know the winter temps keep it away....as does the new 'mysterious' lack of compatibility with diesel particulate filters.

I think the urea process can be used effectively to make cold weather bio-diesel for the winter months. I think it would require its own two tank processor. I think a rather simple processor could be used to allow processing about 10 gallons of biodiesel at a time. This would yield about 6-9 gallons of cold weather fuel as well as being able to recover the remaining warm weather fuel for use in the summer. I'm thinking about a continuous loop processor that allows you to use the same 40 gallons of ethanol over and over again to process 10 gallons of BD. I imagine there would be some losses, but they should be very minimal in a basically closed system.

The only thing I am having a hard time thinking through is the recovery of the Urea to be used over and over. You would either have to water wash the urea/WWBD ( warm weather biodiesel ) or heat it WAY up to get the urea to melt and separate from the WWBD. Once it cools it turns to a solid again....but in a chunk or film.

The most basic idea is to just use the water/urea solution as high nitrogen fertilizer. I don't know who needs that much high nitrogen fertilizer water though....it would be a decent amount and would add cost to the biodiesel since you wouldn't be reusing it.

I think that if you used water it could be distilled off, but that is rather energy intensive. I don't think it would take much water to hold it in solution though. In therory the same water, urea, and ethanol could be used over and over. You could be left with a cake of Urea on the bottom of the distillation vessel....and I don't know how easy it would be to reuse that....maybe it would mix right back in once you heated the methanol and biodiesel along with a little agitation?

Maybe just throw a bunch of solar PV panels on the roof and run the process forever

As far as supercritical fluids go. How cool would it be to be able to use JUST ethanol without a catalyst. The process is tolerant of water also, you don't have to have 99% pure ethanol. In theory you could use home distilled ethanol. On the same lines you could use home pressed oil seed crops too! Boy, that would be a dream! Make your own fuel from scratch on your own land without having to buy ANY chemicals for production.