Getting Started Making Biodiesel

Getting Started Making Biodiesel
by Graydon Blair

Welcome to the wonderful world of Biodiesel. It is a fun and rewarding hobby in which you can make your own fuel to run in diesel engines.

Biodiesel is most commonly made by chemically altering an organic oil through the use of a catalyst and an alcohol, typically Methanol. The chemical reaction that occurs through this process breaks down the oil molecules and replaces the glycerine portion of the molecule with an alcohol molecule. The glycerine falls to the bottom and is drained off resulting in Biodiesel.

The Biodiesel is then typically washed, to remove any extra impurities and is then used as a fuel in a diesel engine without making any modifications to the engine.

Biodiesel is known chemically as a ‘fatty acid methyl ester’. Which is just a fancy way of saying it’s a product made from Methanol and an organic oil with fatty acid chains in it. It is easily made and has many benefits, including environmentally friendlier tailpipe emissions and improved engine performance.

To get started making Biodiesel, there’s a few things you need to know.

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