Can ion exchange beds replace traditional water washing?
The best answer to this is that ion exchange beds are not a “one for one” replacement for water washing of crude biodiesel. Water washing removes: methanol, soaps, glycerides and other impurities — all in one multi-staged process. Ion exchange resins can remove very trace amounts of methanol however this is not their primary function rather they are used to remove almost all other impurities. In this sense it can replace the water wash method but I like to refer to it as biodiesel purification since that is exactly what it does – purify the alkyl-esters (biodiesel) of soaps, positively charged ions (metals) and glycerin (glycerides). Typical homebrew all though acceptable to your engine, most likely isn’t meeting fuel grade standards (ASTM). With ion exchange this is now an economically viable for a small biodiesel producer. To use this system you would follow the GL 1-day method using his EcoProcessor with your Appleseed style reactor. This involves removing methanol via a venturi ai
Related Questions
- Can I replace a traditional water softener system with a SP water conditioner and what difference in performance should I see between the two systems?
- how do water conditioners like Clearwave and EasyWater compare with ion exchange water softeners?
- Can ion exchange beds replace traditional water washing?
