Crafting with Kids

It’s entirely possible that making biodiesel may be a new concept to you. Maybe you will have seen one of those soy powered buses around the place, peaking your interest, or you might just be fed up with those horrible prices at the petrol station. Have you calculated the size of your carbon footprint yet? Each one of us is pausing to consider how we contribute in one way or the other to the threat of global warming and as we get increasingly more frustrated at the site of politicians bickering and taking no action, we must step in.

Some people think that they cannot make biodiesel fuel cost effectively or safely, but they are incorrect. Many thousands of people do this and use the fuel that they manufacture to get back and forth to work each day and live their lives normally. It takes a little bit of application to understand the process until perfected and you do have to use some caution and common sense. You do not need a degree in chemistry and will be able to find the ingredients required rather easily.

It’s essential to remember that you should beware of using any overly simplistic advice or a simply written ‘how to,’ like this one that follows, and before actually attempting to make biodiesel, you’ll need to have exacting information of the process itself and all safety requirements:

Making homemade biodiesel involves a process known as transesterification. You will be using a catalyst (lye) to remove glycerine from vegetable or animal oils or fats and you will effectively be extracting the oil that you can use in your diesel engine.

Use potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide, caustic soda and pick up some methanol as well. The lye and the methanol must be kept protected from the environment as they absorb moisture and you must use pure products.

Take a sturdy plastic container, insert 200 mL of methanol and add the caustic soda. Tightly close the plastic bottle container. Ensure that everything is dissolved by shaking the container vigorously.

Preheat the soy or vegetable oil to about 130°F and pour it into a blender. Add your mixture, close tightly and blend for about 30 minutes. The resulting mixture should be decanted into a large and strong bottle with a tight lid. You should let this settle for up to 24 hours and will note that the glycerine, a dark colour, settles at the bottom. Remove the top layer, which is the biodiesel, into a clean jar, being very careful not to mix in any of the glycerine.

Next you will need to wash your resultant mixture to remove the remaining imperfections by adding clean water, then letting it settle for about four hours or so, and finally allowing the water to drain through a hole in the bottom of your container that you will have made earlier on.

If everything is not clear, repeat the process, but when you are happy with the clarity, the water will have evaporated and you will have your first version of biodiesel fuel. Now that you know that making biodiesel is possible, look into finding more detailed information on the process and get some essential safety advice, before you begin!

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