MAKING A TEST BATCH OF BIODIESEL

Learn how to make a 1 Liter test batch of BioDiesel

We will not be held responsible for any damage caused by your use of these educational
instructions. For your safety, insure you have adequate ventilation (preferably outdoors), are
wearing a protective face shield & gloves because you will be working with CAUSTIC
chemicals that can cause blindness & severe chemical burns. Running water should be readily
available in case of spills or personal contamination. The mixing of Methanol & Lye gets hot and
creates a toxic gas which you should not breathee which is why we recommend you do this
outdoors. This experiment should only be performed by an Adult or under Adult supervision! All
items used will be contaminated (poisoned) afterwards so don't use your good kitchen ware.

Materials Needed: Do not use any aluminum utensils!

1 Plastic 2 liter soda bottle with a tight fitting cap use a clean dry clear plastic soda bottle
1 good Quart Mason Jar with a New Lid.
1 Plastic Funnel
1 Liter ( about 1 Qt) of New Vegetable Oil Canola, Olive, Corn, Peanut, exc.
250 ml (about 1/2 pint or 8 1/2 US Oz ) of Methanol Alcohol The yellow bottle of automotive store
ISO-HEET (not the red bottle!
3 to 5 grams ( about 1 tsp) of Sodium Hydroxide (Lye)

1. Insure all items are at normal room temperature.

2. Put around 1 Liter of Vegetable oil into the 2 Liter bottle.
3. Put 250 ml of ISO-HEET brand Methanol (yellow bottle) into the Mason jar.
4. Weigh out 3 to 5 grams (about a teaspoon full) of Sodium Hydroxide (Lye), Red Devil Brand
works great. Must be kept DRY, it absorbs moisture out of the air & don't let it contact any
aluminum.
5. Carefully put the Lye into the Methanol contained in the Mason Jar & cap it tightly right
away.
6. Begin gently sloshing around the Methanol/Lye mixture in the Mason Jar & continue while
watching to insure it all dissolves. Watch for leaks and don't get any on your skin because it
can cause permanent nerve damage so wear rubber gloves and be extra careful.
The lye must be fully dissolved before proceeding further.
7. Once lye is dissolved, let it settle a bit & look again to insure it is dissolved, if not continue
carefully sloshing.
Depending on the quality of your lye, it may contain insoluble contaminates which may
never dissolve.
8. Now using the funnel, gently pour the Methanol/Lye mixture into the 2 Liter soda bottle with
your oil & cap it tightly.
Remember, don't get any on your skin because permanent nerve damage can result so wear
rubber gloves and be careful.
9. Vigorously shake the 2 litter bottle to mix the contents (about 40 good hard shakes should do
it). Be careful of leaks.
10. Put down the 2 liter bottle & let the contents settle for about 1 hour.
 MAKING A TEST BATCH OF BIODIESEL
You should see a layer of Glycerin form at the bottom of the 2 liter bottle & a thick layer of
oily liquid on top. The top layer is Raw BioDiesel. Slowly inverting the bottle will allow you
to drain out the glycerol easier. Congratulations, you have made a batch of biodiesel fuel.
This fuel is still raw & should be washed & polished before use though if it is to meet the
ASTM D-6751 specification talked about in our FAQ section. Raw BioDiesel contains
alcohol, soap & perhaps some left over Lye so it should be washed to remove these
contaminates before burning in a diesel engine.

To learn about making ASTM grade biodiesel fuel by washing & drying, complete the
two lesson plans below.

How to Wash a 1 Liter test batch of BioDiesel

Materials Needed

1 ea clear empty plastic bottle with squirt cap such as (Dawn or Joy dish soap)
1 ea plastic funnel
1 ea previously made test batch of BioDiesel
Use of a sink with running water.

1. Using a funnel, pour the BioDiesel out of the 2 liter bottle & into the empty clean &
dry dish soap bottle.
Slow handling is the idea here, be careful not to disturb the glycerin layer because
you don't want it in your BioDiesel.
2. Dispose of the Glycerin or save to make soap out of later.
3. Very gently trickle some cold water down the inside of the bottle into the BioDiesel.
You want about a 2 to 1 ratio of BioDiesel to water.
4. Cap the bottle & very slowly invert the bottle a few times. The water should start
turning milky looking, this is soap being captured by the water.
5. With the bottle upside down, open the squirt cap & gently squirt out the milky
looking wash water down the drain.
6. Repeat step 3 - 5 until the water looks clean.
7. Fill as per step 3 then gently shake the bottle once. If the BioDiesel & water separate
quickly this is a good sign, if not repeat step 6.
8. Once the water & BioDiesel separate quickly with a quick shake you can shake it a
few more times. If the water looks only very slightly milky & the BioDiesel separates
out quickly, you are finished washing.
9. Perform step 5 again then Dry your BioDiesel per the instructions below.

How to Dry a 1 Liter test batch of BioDiesel

 MAKING A TEST BATCH OF BIODIESEL
Materials Needed

1 ea Disposable & Microwaveable plastic container without lid.

Large enough to contain 1.5 to 2x the volume of BioDiesel you desire to dry.
1 ea microwave oven or you can use a stove top set to low heat and a steel metal pan.
1 ea metal stir stick
1 ea thermometer such as a candy thermometer
1 ea clean mason jar with a good lid & sealing ring

NOTE: Do not put anything made of metal into your microwave oven!

1. After your finished washing the BioDiesel, let it settle overnight so any tiny droplets
of residual water can settle out.
If your in a hurry you can dry it now without letting it sit overnight.
2. Carefully pour your BioDiesel into the microwaveable container or metal pan if doing
this on a stove top.
If your bottle contains any wash water do not allow any water to get into the drying
container.
3. Use medium heat & gently warm up your BioDiesel (about 30 seconds if
microwaving).
4. Stir your BioDiesel constantly unless your microwaving it.
Stirring breaks the surface tension allowing water vapor to escape safely as well as
equalizing the temperature.
5. Test the temperature periodically to insure it never goes much beyond 240F (water
boils at 212F).
If microwaving, constantly repeat step 3 - 4
6. Once the temperature is greater than the boiling point of water you can be fairly sure
your BioDiesel is dry.
Notice that it now looks clearer than it did before drying.
7. Allow the HOT BioDiesel to cool down before moving it or you may burn yourself.
Stirring it once in a while will allow it to cool off quicker.
8. Once cool, place the BioDiesel in the clean mason jar & seal it up tight.
9. Place the Jar in your refrigerator allow to cool down a few hours.
10. If it still looks clear & has not precipitated out any water, the BioDiesel is dry &
can be used in a diesel engine.
 MAKING A TEST BATCH OF BIODIESEL
How to Make Hand Soap out of waste
Glycerol
Making BioDiesel results in a byproduct called RAW glycerin or glycerol.
This Glycerol can easily be recycled into a good quality Bar type Hand
Soap using this recipe.
1. Strain waste Glycerol through an old pair of pantyhose to remove
impurities.
Heating it up slightly may be required to turn it liquid again.
2. Heat RAW Glycerol to 160F in an old stainless steel pot to evaporate
out residual methanol.
Do this out side! Do not use a container made of aluminum.
3. In another stainless steel pot measure out 1 Qt of water per gallon
of Glycerol & heat to 100F.
(Lye eats aluminum so do not use any aluminum pots or utensils for
this)
4. Slowly add 5.5 oz. of Red Devil Lye (Sodium Hydroxide) per gallon
of glycerin to the hot water & mix until
dissolved. Be careful do not breathe any lye dust and it is best to do
this outside.
5. Pour the lye water mixture into the glycerin & continue to heat the
glycerin for another ten minutes while
mixing. Turn off the heat & mix for another ten minutes at a slow
speed. (20 mins. total mix time)
6. The mixture may foam up slightly and form soap bubbles, that is ok.
After mixing is complete, the soap
can be poured into a container and allowed to cool.
7. 3 gallons of melted soap will make about ninety 2 x 3 x 1 1/2" thick
soap bars.
To do this you will need two 28 qt. Plastic sweater containers (buy
them cheap at Wal-Mart).
Pour the melted soap into the containers to the desired thickness
and cover with a piece of cardboard
or plywood to help hold the heat in, and let set for 24 hrs.
8. After cooling 24 hr, the (green) soap will be ready to be removed
and cut into bars. Use a butter knife or
a putty knife to slice around the inside edge of the container so you
can release the green soap from
the sides of the plastic containers.
9. Quickly flip the container upside down over a piece of newspaper or
cardboard. You may need to tap
lightly on the bottom of the container to help it release and drop
out. You should now have an evenly
 MAKING A TEST BATCH OF BIODIESEL
shaped "slab" of (uncured or green) soap which can be cut into
individual bars. Each slab will produce
about 45 bars of soap measuring 2" X 3" each.
10. Caution, uncured or green soap can burn your skin so allow the
soap to age cure in a dry cool area for
between 1 to 2 weeks before using. When first cut the (green) soap
will appear dark in color, but will
eventually lighten to a tan color as drying (curing) progresses. The
resulting soap is a long lasting bar
with good cleansing abilities leaving no greasy residues.
11. This cured soap can be stored in plastic zip lock bags or placed in
plastic tubs in layers with waxed paper
in between each layer or individually wrapped in paper and kept in
a cool place until ready for use.
12. Fragrances or dyes can be added during the mixing process to
improve color and scent. Some people use
freshly squeezed oranges for the citric acid, which helps with
cutting grease, and gives the soap a
citrus aroma. Another idea is to scent it with cinnamon since it is
naturally a brownish color.