What is Involved in Biodiesel Production?
Biodiesel production is the process of making combustible fuel by reacting vegetable oils or animal fats with methanol or ethanol in the presence of a catalyst which facilitates the reaction. This type of fuel is called biodiesel in part because it can be used to power a diesel engine at a much lower cost than traditional diesel fuel. The process of biodiesel production is a very simple one, that could theoretically be done at home by anyone. There are several major steps in biodiesel production from vegetable oil. Used vegetable oil must first be purified. This is done by filtering it to remove non-oil materials such as dirt or particles of charred food. It must then be heated to about 248 degrees Fahrenheit (120 degrees C). This is hot enough to boil any water out of the oil mixture, but cool enough to keep the oil itself from smoking or burning off. Fatty acids in the waste oil must then be neutralized. This is done by first determining the concentration of fatty acids in a chemical
