Is the handling of biodiesel dangerous?
The flammability of a liquid is expressed as flash point, which is defined as the temperature at which the material can sustain a flame on its surface. From a hazard perspective, diesel fuels in general are considered to be much safer than other petroleum fuels, due to their high flash point. Within diesel fuels, biodiesel is much less flammable than petroleum diesel. To get an idea of the relative flammability of biodiesel, lets compare the flash points of several well-known fuels1: Fuel Flash Point (°F) Propane -100 to –150 Gasoline -45 Charcoal lighter fluid 160 Petroleum diesel 160 Biodiesel 321 From the data above, it is evident that the only reason to classify biodiesel as a ‘fuel’, is the fact that it can substitute well for petroleum diesel. From a flammability perspective, it is closer to the vegetable oil from which it is derived. In a study performed by the University of Idaho, Biodiesel in water was found to degrade 95% in 28 days. During the same time period, petroleum die
