Efficiency of Biodiesel

Compared to Regular
Diesel
Elliot Isenberg, David Etz, Joshua Jacques

ABSTRACT:
This lab was performed in order to test the efficiency of synthesized biodiesel against that of
regular diesel. A subject that can be important in this day and age as many things are run
with diesel. Fortunately we were able to formulate a group made up of extreme diesel
enthusiasts who are very passionate about the subject. Therefore we were eager to test the
efficiency of biodiesel and diesel. This was done by setting up two calorimeters over oil
lamps burning both diesel and biodiesel. We tested how much fuel was left after heating
each calorimeter to 35 degrees Celsius. Overall it was determined that the biodiesel was
more efficient than regular diesel. According to other experiments conducted on the same
topic biodiesel has been found to be more efficient for city driving while slightly less efficient
for highway driving. In the lab it was observed that the biodiesel burned both cleaner and
hotter than the typical diesel. This experiment is important in today's world because diesel is
a fuel that is usually fairly efficient but produces a large amount of off-gassing and isnt
nearly as natural as biodiesel.
INTRODUCTION:
The purpose of this lab was to test the
efficiency of biodiesel to regular diesel
fuel. When given the opportunity to
perform a lab of our choice regarding
energy we thought of biofuels. When the
term biofuel came to mind we instantly
thought of biodiesel. A biodiesel is a fuel
made from chemically reacting lipids
reacting with an alcohol producing fatty
acid esters. To simplify this, a biodiesel is
made when vegetable oil and methanol
react, which gets rid of the oxygen
molecules. When the oxygen molecules
are gone the glycerin from the vegetable
oil settles at the bottom of the mixture. A
tool called a separatory funnel is used to
let the biodiesel to separate into. A
separatory funnel is a piece of laboratory
glassware used in liquid-liquid extractions
to separate the components of a mixture
into two immiscible solvent phases of
different densities.
The way we were measuring this was
observing how much fuel was used to
heat water to 35 C. In order to see how
much fuel was used we constructed a
calorimeter. A calorimeter is a device
used in the process of measuring the heat
of chemical reactions or physical changes
as well as heat capacity. Testing the
efficiency of biodiesel to regular diesel is
important because regular diesel burns
o

inefficiently and produces CO . With the

urge to find cleaner fuel sources this data
is very useful for the search of cleaner
energy.
2

METHODS:
Materials List:
Biodiesel
1.
100mL of methanol
2.
1.75g of potassium hydroxide
3.
500mL of vegetable oil
4.
1000mL and 500mL beaker
5.
250mL graduated cylinder
6.
Hot plate
7.
Stir rod
8.
Separatory funnel
First, start off by measuring out 100 mL of
methanol into a graduated cylinder. Add
this to your 1000 mL beaker. Next weigh
out 1.75g of potassium hydroxide and add
this to the beaker of methanol. Put your
mixture onto a hot plate and add a stir rod
to the beaker. Set the hot plate to a
medium-high stir setting(no heat). Wait
until the potassium hydroxide is
completely dissolved. While waiting,
measure out 500 mL of vegetable oil.
Once ALL potassium hydroxide is
dissolved add your vegetable oil to the
beaker on the hot plate. Set your hot
plate to a high stir setting and wait 20-30
min for mixture to complete its reaction.
While being mixed the mixture will turn a
yellow-orange color. The color change
lets you know a chemical reaction has
occurred. Once the mixture is done
mixing pour half of the mixture into a
separatory funnel and wait for it to
separate. Allow 15 min for separation.
Once complete your mixture will separate
into two liquids. The top layer being your
biodiesel and the bottom layer being your
glycerin. Suspend the separatory funnel

Figure 1: Diagram of Calorimeter

over a waster container and turn the knob

to the left to drain the glycerin. Once
glycerin is no longer present pour the
biodiesel into a beaker. Repeat this
process for the remainder of the original
mixture. Finished product is shown in
Figure 1.
Calorimeter:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

250 mL of water
60 mL of regular diesel
60 mL of biodiesel
500 mL beaker
Graduated cylinder
Thermometer
Two oil lamps
Scale

First, measure out 250 mL of water into a

graduated cylinder. Add this to the 500
mL beaker. Next add the thermometer to
the beaker. If a second calorimeter is
needed repeat process. Finished product
is shown in Figure 1. Weigh out both of
the oil lamps BEFORE you add the fuel
sources. Once weighed out pour 60 mL
of biodiesel into one of the oil lamps and
pour 60 mL of regular diesel into the other
oil lamp. Make sure the distance from the
oil lamps to the calorimeter are equal
distance apart. As shown in Figure 2.
Make sure BEFORE you light the wick
you have titled the oil lamp upside down
to make sure wick soaks up the fuel.
Once complete light the wicks. Finished
product is shown in Figure 2. Continue to
observe until a thermometer reads 35 C.
Next put out the flame and a record the
mass. Repeat process for the following oil
lamp.
o

Figure 2: Diagram of the determination of biodiesel to diesel efficiency.

Hazards:
Biodiesel

Potassium hydroxide can be a

hazardous irritant when exposed at
high levels
Biodiesel is flammable and should
be handled with care at all times
especially around an open flame
Methanol can cause blindness if it
gets into your eyes
Sodium hydroxide can be fatal if
ingested

Diesel
Short exposure to diesel exhaust
can cause headaches, and

irritation of the eyes,nose and

throat
Long term exposure to the exhaust
can cause a wide array of lung
diseases and it can cause lung
cancer
Exposure to diesel in liquid form
can also be an eye, skin and
respiratory irritant
labeled as a class three
carcinogen
vapors may react poorly in the air

Results:
Table 1: This Table shows the increase in temperature and how much fuel was used to heat
the water that much
Diesel
Temperature( C)
o

20

25

30

milliliters lost

35
7.21g

Biodiesel
Temperature( C)
o

Milliliters lost

20

25

30

35
4.12g

Some observations that were made include; the diesel released a very large amount of soot
meanwhile the biodiesel released almost no soot, The biodiesel flame burned a lot smaller,
although both flames had different heights they both absorbed into the wick and had similar
times taken to set ablaze. Each fuel burned at a consistent rate.
Discussion:
The purpose of this lab was to test the
efficiency of biodiesel to regular diesel
fuel. The expected result was that the
diesel was going to be more efficient than
the biodiesel. As you can see by the data
in Table 1, the biodiesel is more efficient.
After heating each calorimeter to the
same temperature it was recorded that
less biodiesel was lost than regular diesel.
In observing the lab we noticed that
biodiesel did not produce as large of a
flame as the diesel. We also observed

that the biodiesel produced a much

cleaner byproduct (smoke) than the
regular diesel as shown in Figure 2 above.
Although we did not record the amount of
time each experiment took, we did notice
that the diesel seemed to heat the water
in the calorimeter quicker than the
biodiesel. Other experiments have shown
similar results, showing diesel to be
slightly more efficient on the highway, but
in the city biodiesel has been shown to be
both cleaner and more efficient than
regular diesel.

If we were to do this again I would have

changed many parts of the lab where we
determined the efficiency. I would have
liked to keep time during the heating
process. Keeping time would have
allowed us to see which fuel heated the
water the quickest. I would also set aside
more time. We ended up running out of
time during the lab so we were not able to
heat the biodiesel to 35 C. The data we
ended up collecting was not exact like we
wanted it to be.
0

These results cannot be considered 100%

accurate until several more tests have
been run. As with anything there can be
errors and inaccuracy with measuring
equipment. However this lab process was
fairly precise in an effort to minimize these
errors. Another problem that could arise in
further experimentation would be that
different quality of biodiesel could be
made, there is no way to help this other
than sticking to the same formula to make
it.