How To Make Biodiesel & Making Biodiesel at Home

Got the heart for energy conservation and time to spare? Do your part to save energy by making your own biodiesel at home. It’s a fairly simple process that uses readily available ingredients, so anyone with enough willingness and interest can make it.

Biodiesel fuel is a clean processed fuel equivalent to diesel, which is made purely from biological sources. Unlike straight vegetable oil or waste vegetable oil, biodiesel can be readily used on diesel engine vehicles. 

Biodiesel is fairly easy to produce, and anyone can make it in the comfort of their own homes. Here’s how:

You will need:

- a blender
- scales
- two funnels
- measuring beakers
- an HDPE container
- a PET bottle
- a liter of new and unused vegetable oil
- 200ml of methanol (preferably 99% or more pure)
- a lye catalyst, such as sodium hydroxide

Directions:

Use a funnel to carefully pour the 200ml methanol onto the HDPE container. Afterwards, add the lye catalyst onto the HDPE container using another funnel. Tightly close the container with a cap. Once the cap is secure, swirl the bottle around a few times, for a couple of minutes, causing the lye to dissolve. Keep swirling until the lye dissolves completely.

In the meantime, pre-heat the vegetable oil to 55 degrees Centigrade, and afterwards, pour it on a blender. It is best to use a blender that’s second-hand or one that you don’t use in the kitchen anymore. While the blender is still turned off, carefully pour the contents of the HDPE container (the methanol and the lye catalyst) with the vegetable oil. Secure the lid of the blender, and blend the mixture for at least 20 minutes at low speed.

After the mixture has been properly blended, pour the concoction onto a PET bottle. Screw the lid on tightly and allow the mixture to settle for 12 to 24 hours. 

Once the mixture looks translucent or clear, it is dry and hence ready to use. The length of the process differs, from a day to a few days. Heating the mixture further hastens the process.

Before using your home-made biodiesel, it would be best to first test its quality using a variety of methods which you can find over the internet.

You can also scour the internet for other ways and methods to make biodiesel. Some prefer using a mini-processor instead of a blender, while others use other kinds of lye catalysts, such as potassium hydroxide.

If your first batch of biodiesel isn’t as effective as you might have expected, don’t fret – all it takes is a little patience, a lot of willingness, and the interest and energy to do it all over again, until you get it right.

While doing anything and everything that you can to help conserve energy is undoubtedly noble, it is important to remember that in making biodiesel, you are dealing with materials that may be dangerous or harmful if not handled carefully. When making biodiesel at home, safety should be your first concern. Take all steps necessary to avoid any accidents, keep your materials away from children and pets, and always take great caution in all that you do.