Making your own fuel

Making Biodiesel Fuel at Home

Everyone making biodiesel is still experimenting and refining
their techniques and processes. Here are some recipes
people have used successfully before.

1. Recipe for New Vegetable Oil

Recipe from the Veggie Van folks: Fat Of The Land Recipe

Remember that the chemicals needed
to make biodiesel can be toxic and dangerous. Please be careful and take all safety precautions.
We are not responsible for any injuries or damage to any vehicles from using biodiesel.
University of Idaho Transesterification Process to Manufacture Ethyl Ester of Rape Oil by
Roger A Korus, etal.

Ingredients:

250g of rapeseed oil

2.5 g (1% by weight of the oil) of potassium hydroxide

The catalyst 72 g of ethanol (200 proof) (twice as much as the
minimum necessary)

Dissolve the catalyst in the ethanol which will require stirring and slight heating. Add
ethanol/catalyst mixture to the oil and stir the mixture vigorously. After 120 minutes of
reaction time at room temperature the mixture was allowed to sit overnight while separation
occurs. Pour off the biodiesel from the top of the container.

Washing the biodiesel

Water is sprayed at low velocity on top of a tall column of biodiesel. The water will
wash away any excess alcohol and catalyst. It will emulsify somewhat with the biodiesel. The
less this is agitated the better as agitation will cause more emulsification and less useful
biodiesel. Let this sit for 24-48 hours until the water has settled.
University of Idaho, Production and Testing of Ethyl and Methyl Esters by Charles L Peterson,
etal. 1994
Methyl Ester Biodiesel Ingredients

• MeOH = .225 x Oil
• KOH = Oil/100
• where:
• Oil = desired amount of oil in liter
• MeOH = amount of methanol in liters
• KOH = amount of potassium hydroxide require in Kg

For Ethyl Ester Biodiesel

• EtOH= .2738 x Oil
• KOH = Oil/85
• where:
• Oil = desired amount of oil in liters
• EtOH = amount of ethanol in liters
• KOH = amount of potassium hydroxide require in Kg

Methods

The catalyst is dissolved into the alcohol by vigorous stirring in a
small reactor. The oil is transferred into the biodiesel reactor and
then the catalyst /alcohol mixture is pumped into the oil and the final
mixture is stirred vigorously for 2 hours. A successful reaction
produces two liquid phases: ester and crude glycerol. Crude glycerol,
the heavier liquid will collect at the bottom after several hours of
settling. Phase separation can be observed with 10 minutes and can be
complete within 2 hours of settling. Complete settling can take as long
as 20 hours. After settling is complete, water is added at the rate of
5.5% by volume of the oil and then stirred for 5 minutes and the
glycerol is allowed to settle again. After settling is complete the
glycerol is drained and the ester layer remains. Washing the ester is
a two step process which is carried out with extreme care. A water wash
solution at the rate of 28% by volume of oil and 1 gram of tannic acid
per liter of water is added to the ester and gently agitated. Air is
carefully introduced into the aqueous layer while simultaneously
stirring very gently. This process is continued until the ester layer
becomes clear. After settling the aqueous solution is drained and
water alone is added at 28% by volume of oil for the final washing.

Anonymous Recipe

Ingredients:

• 100 lbs of Soybean Oil
• 15 lbs of alcohol (methanol)
• 1 lb of catalyst (sodium hydroxide)

Products:

• 100 lbs biodiesel
• 10 lbs glycerol
• 5 lbs methynol (reusable)
• 1 lb soap

TRANSESTERIFICATION

Turning used vegetable oil into clean burning
biodiesel fuel. According to a report issued by the Univ.of Idaho Dept
of Agriculture: Transesterification is the process of using an alcohol
(e.g., methanol or ethanol) in the presence of a catalyst, such as
sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide, to chemically break the
molecule of the raw renewable oil into methyl or ethyl esters of the renewable
oil with glycerol as a by-product (1991).
Transesterification is not a new process. It was conducted as early as
1853, by scientists E. Duffy and J. Patrick (Production, 1995). One of the first uses of transesterified vegetable oil was powering heavy duty
vehicles in South Africa before World War II. The name “biodiesel” has
been given to transesterified vegetable oil to describe its use as a
diesel fuel.
The methyl ester of vegetable oil, or biodiesel, is very similar to diesel fuel. Its viscosity is only twice that of diesel fuel and its
molecular weight is roughly 1/3 of vegetable oil. Most Diesel engines were designed to use highly lubricating, high sulfur content fuel.
Recent environmental legislature has forced diesel fuel to contain only a minimum amount of sulfur for lubricating purposes. Thus, the
slightly higher viscosity of biodiesel is helpful and lubricating to most Diesel motors. Waste fryer oil, a commodity which is considered
toxic waste by the EPA, can also be transesterified into biodiesel.
The process of converting vegetable oil into biodiesel fuel is called transesterification and is luckily less complex than it sounds.
Chemically, transesterification means taking a triglyceride molecule, or a complex fatty acid, neutralizing the free fatty acids, removing
the glycerin, and creating an alcohol ester. This is accomplished by mixing methanol1 (wood alcohol) with lye (sodium hydroxide) to make
sodium methoxide. This dangerous liquid is then mixed into vegetable oil. The entire mixture then settles. Glycerin is left on the bottom
and methyl esters, or biodiesel, is left on top. The glycerin can be used to make soap (or any one of 1,600 other products) and the methyl
esters is washed and filtered. The resulting biodiesel fuel when used directly in a Diesel engine will burn up to 75% cleaner than petroleum
D2 fuel.

HOME MIXING OF USED VEGETABLE OIL INTO FUEL FOR DIESEL ENGINES

Vegetable oil will react very similarly to diesel fuel under the conditions inside a diesel engine; i.e. when it is highly compressed,
it will heat up and ignite, causing the air in the cylinder to expand, and to push the pistons, in time. If you burned straight unprocessed
vegetable oil, however, the fatty acids in the oil would start to congeal and harden (coke up) on the inside of your engine as well as
in your fuel injectors, eventually leading to big, expensive engine problems. Therefore, it is necessary to process your oil to remove the
fatty acids– making the oil more similar to diesel compositionally, or to otherwise devise a system to keep your engine clean of residues
from unprocessed oil.
Following is our procedure for edible waste oil transesterification, which we used on our cross country trip. Please always use extreme
caution when working with these ingredients.

WARNINGS AND DISCLAIMERS!!!!!!!!!!!

We are not automotive engineers, chemists nor scientists of any type so this information is still in a crude, explorative stage. Experiment
to find what works for you.
This information was collected from various individuals and has been used by us BUT by no means do we hold any responsibility for anyone
attempting to do this process. Essentially this is public information to be used at your own discretion and risk. There is information
available regarding transesterification and biodiesel. It is highly recommended to cross-reference and/or to contact someone in the
organic chemistry department at a local university.
This information shall not be resold to any individual but given freely to all who may inquire about this procedure.
Methanol is toxic. It can be absorbed by the skin and cause nerve deterioration with prolonged usage. If splashed in eyes it can cause
blindness and could be fatal if swallowed. Take necessary precautions when using methanol! A good respirator and decent rubber gloves are
recommended.
Lye is also very toxic and burns the skin upon touch. It is also extremely damaging if
ingested. It is possible, however to set up a safe means of being able to mix fuel. An outdoor
area is preferable or a space with plenty of ventilation. Access to electricity and water are
both necessary. Have lots of newspapers and detergent on hand. Always mix a small batch first
in an old blender to test your ratios. If successful the amounts can be multiplied directly.
NEVER EVER USE ANY OF THE UTENSILS, POTS NOR BLENDER FOR LIQUID NOR FOOD CONSUMPTION AGAIN!!!

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