Paper No.

00-6010
An ASAE Meeting Presentation

Biodiesel raw materials can be inexpensive,

sometimes free!
by

L. G. Schumacher
Associate Professor
Agricultural Engineering Department
University of Missouri
Columbia, MO 65211

There are only three biodiesel raw materials needed.

Vegetable Oil or Animal Fats
Methanol
Caustic Soda or Potassium Hydroxide.

Lets look at them one by one.

Vegetable Oils
Vegetable oils are the most commonly used biodiesel raw materials. The reason is that
compared to animal fats they are easy to use and do not have a bad odor.

Virgin Oils

Virgin Oils are much easier to use when making biodiesel, but they are just too expensive for
making home made biodiesel. Big commercial plants prefer to use virgin oil as it makes the
design of the plant much easier. Small margin, high turnover and possibly government
subsidy makes the business viable. Plants in the US widely use Soybean Oil while plants in
Europe mostly use Rapeseed. Plants in tropical countries usually use oils that come from
plants that grow in the tropics like Palm, Jatropha Curcas and Coconut.
Used Oils
Most home diy biodiesel is made from used vegetable oil. It is the biodiesel raw material
material of choice. The cost is good, in many countries it is free and it is available with little
work.

Animal Fat
Although they make great fuel (with some cold weather issues) the problem with animal
products is the smell. For the sake of peace in the home they are best avoided.

Biodiesel from Algae

A number of species of Algae have up to 60% oil content. This together with the very high
yields per Hectare for Algae makes it a very exciting possible crop for biodiesel production.
Algae to biodiesel is still very much in the research and development stage. The concept is
wonderful; if the projections of yields from algae are achieved then we would be able to
replace fossil fuels. As algae is such a topical subject we have a whole section dedicated to
Algae.

Biodiesel from Corn

Corn is a starch crop but does have a small amount of oil in it. Corn oil does make good
biodiesel but it is not a good crop to grow specifically to make biodiesel from. If the crop is
fermented and turned into Ethanol then the oil can also be separated and used for making
biodiese in which case it may be viable.

Biodiesel from Used Motor Oil

The term biodiesel means diesel fuel transformed from biological organism (various forms of
cooking oil) .Most motor oil is produced from crude oil. Some is synthetically manufactured.
The molecular structure of crude oil products is totally different from vegetable oils and
animal fats. This means that is not possible to make biodiesel from used motor oils and they
are not suitable biodiesel raw materials. There is machinery available that can turn old motor
oil into fuel but it is a lot more expensive that biodiesel equipment and uses a totally different
process. Motor oil is a hydrocarbon biodiesel is a hydroxide hence motor oil releases CO2
(carbon dioxide) when burned and biodiesel releases H2O (water) when burned.
These days the state of our environment is forcing people and manufacturing companies to
do what they can to protect it. Many people trying to convert used motor oil by just filtering
the waste oil with a 10 micron filter and lowering the viscosity by mixing with 5 to 10 %
diesel or kerosene.

There is a Japanese environmental equipment manufacturer and supplier called Fuji Energy
Co. who have created a compact processing device used to transform used engine oil or other
waste oils into fuel oil.

What this device does is it mixes already used engine oil and Type A fuel in a 40 to 60 ratio,
heats it up to 60 degrees Celsius and then it takes away the solids using a centrifuge. After
this process, the oil goes through a precision filter roughly six or seven times, which breaks it
down to micron-sized units. When these units are emulsified, you then get an alternative fuel
for boilers with basically the same composition as Type A fuel oil.

There has already been a model of this processing device built by the company Fuji Energy
and they are testing it at a hot bath facility in Ehime Prefecture. The company states that the
device gets rid of exhaust gas regulations. This machine can process around 100 liters of oil a
day and costs around US $8.70 a month to operate.

The compact version which is priced at $48 000 is 80 x 80 x 130cm and can be installed
beside and connected to a Type A fuel oil boiler. Fuji Energy is trying to ship fifty of these a
year to transportation companies and food factories, using the selling point that this device
has the ability to reduce fuel expenses by 30%.

Companies keep creating new unimaginable ways to help the environment hopefully soon all
companies will take part and use these devices to help save the environment and make our
planet a better place.

Methanol
Methanol is a product of the petroleum industry. It was made in the 1800's from wood but
this is no longer done. It is the most common industrial solvent and is widely used by
industry. It is also used as antifreeze. Google for Methanol or industrial solvent suppliers in
your area then follow the results.
Methanol is also widely used at racetracks as a racing fuel. The main reason for this is that
Methanol fires (unlike Petrol) can be put out with water. You can buy methanol from Duda
Biodiesel

Caustic Soda or Potassium Hydroxide

Caustic Soda is found in most supermarkets and is sold as a drain cleaner. Look at the back of
the container - you are looking for 99% or better purity. Avoid any product that has other
strange things in it, a good indication of this is low purity. Also avoid liquids, you are looking
for pellets, flakes or powder. Both these chemicals are also used in the soap making industry.
You can buy Caustic Soda from Duda Biodiesel. A word of warning though, some suppliers
will need proof of who you are as these chemicals are also used in the manufacture of drugs.
Mostly these chemicals are imported from the East.