How is Biodiesel Made From Waste Cooking Oil Collection?
HOW IS BIODIESEL MADE FROM WASTE COOKING OIL COLLECTION
Biodiesel can be used for a lot of things and different processes create biodiesel. But did you know you can use waste cooking oil collection? Here’s how.
Keyword(s): waste cooking oil collection
If you’re reading this, you probably already know what biodiesel is.
If not, it’s a renewable source of fuel for diesel engines that is cleaner, cheaper, and better for the environment than diesel. This post, however, will focus on exactly how it’s made from waste cooking oil collection.
Keep reading to learn more about this alternative fuel.
Step 1: Waste Cooking Oil Collection
The first step we take in creating biodiesel is to collect the cooking oil. It comes from restaurants, schools, grocery stores, and hotels that use cooking oil.
While there are a few ways to get rid of it, allowing it to be collected and turned into an alternative fuel is a great way for companies to do their part in helping the environment.
Step 2: Filtering the Oil
Little bits of food don’t belong in your engine, which is why this step is critical for the production of biodiesel. This step involves heating the oil to specific temperatures several times, with fine-mesh strains in between each heating.
The heating is designed to remove as much water from the oil as possible. Water is something you do NOT want in your fuel lines, which is why we make sure at the end of this step, all that’s left if oil.
Step 3: Titration Process
This part of the process is when we test the oil to see how acidic it is. The pH level of the oil will indicate how much lye will be needed to completely turn the used cooking oil into biodiesel.
Step 4: Separate Oil and Glycerin
At this point, the oil is made up of two parts: biodiesel and glycerin. We need to chemically separate the two, so we use our calculations from the titration process to add enough lye to get them to separate.
Once we’ve shaken the oil with the lye solution and allowed the chemical reaction to take place, we set the oil aside overnight to settle. Then, we carefully pour off the biodiesel and leave the glycerin behind.
Step 5: Cleaning the Biodiesel
At this point, there’s still some soap in the biodiesel, which needs to come out before it’s considered a finished product. To do this, we add some warm water to the biodiesel and gently mix it to combine with the soap.
After several rinses, it should be free from soap and ready to move onto the final step.
Step 6: Drying the Biodiesel
The final step is to remove the last of the water from the biodiesel. As previously mentioned, this is vital because of the damage water does to an engine. This is by far the easiest part of the process as all we have to do is allow the biodiesel to sit out in the open and the remaining water will evaporate on its own.
After it’s dry, it’s ready to bottle or be used to power any diesel engine!
Waste Cooking Oil Collection Services
We would love to help you with your waste cooking oil problem by removing it for you then turning it into a sustainable source of fuel for others to use.
Contact us today for more information about how we can help you get rid of your waste cooking oil.