Biodiesel Production Catalysts
If you decide to make biodiesel at home, you’ll find that the process is like making homemade soap. The vegetable oil that you use for biodiesel is similar to animal fat in that it contains triglyceride which has glycerin in it. In order to take the vegetable oil and turn in into biofuel or biodiesel, you will have to get rid of the glycerin that is contained in the oil. Once the oil and glycerin and separated, the substance is considered to be esterfied.
How Do You Displace the Glycerin During Biodiesel Production?
During the production process of biodiesel, you will add either a methanol or ethanol based alcohol to separate the glycerin from the oil. In order to trigger the reaction that causes the separation, lye is used as the primary catalyst to start the chemical reaction.
Where Do You Find Methanol?
When you go to buy methanol to make your homemade biodiesel, you’ll find that there are a lot of different products out there to look through. Some of these include wood alcohol, wood spirits, alcohol, methyl hydroxide, methylol, pyroxylic spirit, monohydroxymethane, hydroxymethane, colonial spirits, carbinol, stove fuel, methy hydrate, and wood naphtha to name a few. They all describe methanol. If you are in doubt, you should double check before purchasing. One of the product names, methylcarbinol, can be used to describe methanol or ethanol. Ethanol is several degrees harder to work with when making your own biodiesel. The other thing to watch, is to not substitute isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) or methylated spirits (denatured alcohol) or your biodiesel production will fail. Do not buy methanol in large quantities until you have successfully made biodiesel and have your process nailed down.
What Does Lye Do in the Biodiesel Production Process?
Lye is the catalyst that helps change the glycerin into biodiesel. When choosing what type of lye to use for your production, you can choose between potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide. Normally, you will find it a bit easier and cheaper to buy sodium hydroxide. If you decide to use potassium hydroxide, check your biodiesel instructions with many of them requiring you to use up to 1.4 times as much as with sodium hydroxide. You will also need to use isopropanol for the titration of your biodiesel. All of these ingredients can be purchased at your local drug store, craft store, and chemical suppliers.
Biodiesel Production Safety When Handing Lye
You should be safe and careful during the entire biodiesel process, but especially so when handing lye. You will need to wear eye and hand protection when handling lye as well as a respirator rated to protect against the chemical. You should not eat around it, and do not store your materials in tin, zinc, or aluminum containers to avoid a reaction with the lye. Ensure you review biodiesel safety precautions before starting to make your first batch of biodiesel in the home.
When the Biodiesel Production Process is Completed
When you finish making your biodiesel, you will see the separated glycerin sitting on the bottom of the container in two different layers. The bottom layer of the gylcerin will be separated from the remainder of the mixture. You can then use the biodiesel fuel you have created as an alternative energy source that is located at the top of the container.