/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>10451

>Rather than veggie oil.

Sorry packing and trying to keep up with the new boards.

>>10367
>>10304
>>10219

Thanks man.

Again, one of the reasons people use biodiesel rather than biodiesel is because it is essentially diesel, rather than veggie oil and it has a very similar combustion ratio.

From what I understand many modern diesel engines no longer work with 100% biodiesel fuel, because of where the fuel ignition happens in the engine.

In vehicles after 2007: "And here is where the pitfall lies for biodiesel users like myself. Most of the manufactures decided to inject fuel into the cylinders just after the cylinder fires and the exhaust valve opens. At this point, the fuel vaporizes and the vapors move down the exhaust to the DPF and clean it. Because biodiesel is denser than conventional diesel fuel (it has a longer hydrocarbon chain) and has a higher distillation temperature and boiling point, it does not vaporize as easily. Some of the fuel ends up adhering to the cylinder wall and runs past the rings, diluting engine oil. "

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/alternative-fuel/biofuels/4311498

Also I'll try and dig up a pricing guide.

>>9817

That's one of my biggest problems too, I live in apartments and have no yard.

I will be petitioning the town I'm moving to to allow public space for alternative fuel projects. We'll see how that goes over.

If that fails, I'll attempt to put up my GL Processor in the parent's yard.

Also this is a GL processor:

http://www.biopowered.co.uk/wiki/Processor_-_with_Methanol_condenser_(GL_design)

The wiki on this is incredible so I'll spare the board of typing it out. I also have a pricing guide on it which I can post in a bit.

This is ultimately what makes biodiesel not only cost effective, but easy to make in huge batches.

Those are pretty much the steps to creating 1 liter of biodiesel.

It's difficult, dangerous and a rather intense process.

However if it's done properly and on a large scale it is the cheapest form of fuel currently on the market.

Step 6: Cleanup
• Wash all glassware with hot water and soap and
place on paper towel to dry
• Put leftover methanol in a clearly labeled safety
container/bottle
• Store leftover KOH in a cool, dry place
• Put leftover used oil in a dark container and store it in cool, dry place.
• Clean all equipment and containers. Do not use for food.
• Wash all glassware

Step 5: Allow the Glycerin to Settle
• 75% of the separation will take
place within the first hour after the
reaction.
• Within 8 hours, the glycerin will fall to the bottom of the large mason jar
• The top layer should be methyl esters or biodiesel
• Label mason jar “biodiesel reaction in progress- do not drink”
• Wait at least 8 hours for the separation of biodiesel & glycerin.
• Separation can continue for another 24-36 hours

Step 4: Mix the Reactants
• Continue to operate under the lab fume hood.
• Carefully pour the potassium methoxide on top
of the vegetable oil in the large mason jar.
• Secure the lid on the large mason jar. Be sure it
seals tightly.
• Shake vigorously for 15 minutes.

Step 3:
Dissolve the KOH in the Methanol
• Carefully pour the KOH into the methanol filled jar.
• Put the top securely on the jar and agitate until the KOH is
completely dissolved in the methanol. There should be no visible flakes.
• The solution created is potassium methoxide, a strong caustic. Be very careful handling it.

Step 2: Measure the Reactants

• 500 ml of filtered used oil into a large mason jar
• Perform under fume hood: 100ml of methanol into a small mason jar.
• Make sure not to spill any on yourself or on your work space. If any methanol spills, clean the spill with a wet paper towel immediately.
• L grams (determined by titration) of KOH onto a petri dish on a scale

• Our base equation is:
7.0 g KOH + L = X
Where L is the number of grams of KOH necessary to neutralize and react one liter of used vegetable oil and X the number of milliliters of KOH/water solution dropped into the oil alcohol mixture
• Modified equation to account for impurity of KOH:
(7.0 g KOH / % purity) + L = X
Note: The above equations are for 1 liter batches. Adjust for other volumes as necessary.

Step 1: Titration
method of determining how much catalyst needed to neutralize the fatty acids in the used vegetable oil.
1. Measure 1 gram of KOH onto a petri dish on a scale
2. Measure 1 liter of distilled water into a 1500ml beaker
3. Pour the 1 gram of KOH into the 1 liter of water
4. Label this beaker with a piece of masking tape & marker “KOH/Water solution-do no drink”
5. Measure 10 ml of isopropyl alcohol into a 20 ml beaker
6. Dissolve 1 ml of used vegetable oil into the isopropyl alcohol
7. Label this 20ml beaker “oil/alcohol solution”
8. Add 2 drops of pH indicator to the oil/alcohol solution
9. Use a graduated eyedropper or burette to drip the KOH/water solution
into the oil/alcohol solution about 1 millimeter at a time
10. Swirl the vegetable solution as the KOH/water is added and watch
carefully for a color change. The change will occur suddenly.
11. Record the quantity of KOH/water solution you add until the color of the oil/alcohol changes pink and holds for at least 5 seconds. (This represents a pH of between 8 and 9).

>>9293

I completely agree with you, this is not a sustainable practice, but in the short term (20 years out) this can not only save money, but also help avoid the economic crunch until there's greater advances in battery technology for electric vehicles.

With vertical farming this may become a sustainable practice. This might also be used on a small scale for larger vehicles, or even to help clean up the huge amounts of algae bloom in downstream rivers.

More concepts about the process: Titrating

-Titrating- a method of determining the concentration of a dissolved substance-- vegetable oil--in terms of the smallest amount of a reagent--potassium hydroxide--is required to bring about a given effect--neutralize the FFAs.

-We will use a chemical pH indicator that
changes color when the FFAs are neutralized

>>9194

No, I've only made it in small batches, but I recently got a job where I can afford to make larger batches of it.

So... expect more information in the coming months.

If you make biodiesel in large batches, it can cost you less than a dollar a gallon.

Thus my interest in it.

Over the life of a small vehicle it can save you nearly $30,000.

>>9023

You can use ethanol. The chemical process is a bit different in terms of how much you have to use, but I believe Methanol is usually the cheaper alternative.

First thing a person should do when making biodiesel is attempt to make a small batch before going onto a huge project that can set you back thousands of dollars on supplies and equipment.

Sample Supplies for a Mini-Batch
Chemicals:
- New or used vegetable oil
- Isopropyl alcohol (>90% rubbing
alcohol)
- Methanol
- Potassium hydroxide
- Distilled water

Other supplies:
- Paper towels, marker, masking tape
- 20ml beakers, 500ml beakers, 1500ml
beakers
- Petri dishes for measuring KOH,
eyedroppers with 1 ml graduations
- Mason jars

>>8881

Again it has mainly to due with the lower combustion points, to avoid gelling. Even with a converted engine and sometimes it just doesn't combust properly and then you're stuck with a fucked engine for a while.

Everything has to be drained and cleaned, or heated or mixed after it has already been pushed into the engine.

The engine conversion on a biodiesel engine consists of replacement tubing to avoid corrosion.

Plus if you need to, you can still use the veggie oil in a pinch.

Biodiesel Safety - Part 3

More on Potassium and Sodium Methoxide

Treat either methoxide with extreme caution. Do
not inhale any vapors.

If methoxide gets splashed on your skin, it will
burn you without your feeling it (killing the nerves)
-- wash immediately with lots of water.

Always have immediate access to running water
when working with methoxide.

methoxide is also very corrosive to paints.

Sodium or Potassium hydroxide reacts with
aluminum, tin and zinc. Use glass, enamel or
stainless steel containers -- stainless steel is best.

Biodiesel Safety - Part 2

Organic vapor cartridge respirators are more or less useless against methanol vapors.

Professional advice is not to use organic vapor cartridges for longer than a few hours maximum, or not to use them at all.

Only a supplied-air system, like a self contained breathing apparatus, will do.

The best advice is not to expose yourself to the fumes in the first place.

The main danger is when the methanol is hot -- when it's cold or at "room temperature" it fumes very little.

All methanol containers should be kept tightly closed anyway to prevent water absorption from the air.

It is best to transfer methanol from its container to the methoxide mixing container by pumping it, with no exposure at all.

Making methoxide releases heat and causes methanol to get hot but keeping the container closed and properly vented prevents harmful fumes from contaminating the work space.

Biodiesel Safety - Part 1

Wear proper protective gloves, apron, and eye protection and do not inhale any vapors --
Methanol can cause blindness and death, and you don't even have to drink it, it's absorbed through the skin.

Sodium or Potassium hydroxide can cause severe burns and death. Together these two chemicals form sodium methoxide or potassium methoxide. This is an extremely caustic chemical.

Wear a mask and full body covering for safety, that means chemical-proof gloves with cuffs that can be pulled up over long sleeves.

Always have a immediate access to running water when working with them.

The workspace must be thoroughly ventilated.

Before we get into the step by step process of making biodiesel, we must discuss safety. I don't want to hear of 60 anons blowing themselves up next week, or melting themselves with chemicals in order to save a couple of dollars on gasoline.

So...

Safety motherfuckers, this is really dangerous shit, you're basically mixing and making chemical weapons, racecar fuel and bombs at the same time.

This WILL kill you if you're not careful and could likely kill friends and family if you're a dumb asshole with it.

Rate of Reaction
• Transesterification can happen at
ambient/70 degrees F, need 4-8 hours for
completion
• Reaction is shortened to 2-4 hours at 105
degrees F
• Even shorter time 1-2 hours at 140
degrees
• Watch out! Methanol boils at 148degrees

>This basically means hotter is better, but too hot can blow you up.
>This is why many home biodiesel set ups use what amounts to modified hot water heaters to speed up the reaction process.

>Ok - so now that there's a simple understanding of what goes into biodiesel, how does it all work?

During transesterification a basic catalyst breaks the fatty acids from the glycerin
one by one. If a methanol contacts a fatty acid they will bond and form biodiesel.
The hydroxyl group from the catalyst stabilizes the glycerin.