Biodiesel fuel has certainly been capturing the attention of so many people all over the world these days, and this is because of the many benefits that come with its usage. If you are wondering just how great these benefits are, well, picture these: more savings for you and a cleaner and greener planet for every human being. With these huge advantages, wouldn't you say for yourself that the concept of using biodiesel fuel is indeed something that is worth mentioning? But before we get down to these benefits and advantages, it would be better to answer this question first: just how is biodiesel made?
Biodiesel fuel is actually made of vegetable oil. Yes, that is right, vegetable oil. But how do you really go about this?
Let us start by mentioning the raw materials that are needed in producing biodiesel, which are Methanol and a certain vegetable product. Corn is actually one of the veggies commonly used in producing biodiesel. But you should not limit yourself to just corn, especially when you are residing in an area where corn is scarce. Other veggies that are commonly used include soybeans and flaxseed.
The first step in the process is to use your raw veggie to create vegetable oil. You do not just use vegetable oil in its own self to power your diesel engine. This has to be processed first and then converted into biodiesel.
Ester interchange is the name of the process that is used in the conversion of vegetable oil into biodiesel. Vegetable oil has to be mixed with just a little bit of Methanol. The mixture is then placed in the presence of an alkaline catalyst. An example of this is sodium hydroxide, and the most that you should use is just 1% of the total mixture. Now, triglycerides actually comprise vegetable oil. Triglycerides are compounds of glycerin that has three fatty acids. The main goal in the whole process is the separation of the glycerin molecule from its three fatty acids. Moreover, these fatty acids would then be replaced with three methanol molecules. The end product of this process is the 10% glycerin byproduct and 90% biodiesel. Currently, there are studies being conducted to determine if the glycerin byproduct can actually be used in feeding animals. If this is so then the process of ester interchange would then yield not a single waste product at all.
