Vegetable oil can be used as a fuel. This is useful for transportation (use in vehicles), electricity generation (stationary use), ...

Diesel engines can be modified to run on straight vegetable oil or waste vegetable oil (used cooking oil). Problems can occur with some engine types when operated for extended periods at idle or low load as vegetable oil does not burn well in these conditions. Suitable engine modifications along with attention to fuel quality, ambient temperatures and operating regime generally avoids these issues.

Petrol engines can only be made to run on ethanol. However, [biodiesel]] may also be used in petrol engines, if mixed with ethanol[1] Some engines, oil types, and ambient conditions though can cause problems.

Finally, vegetable oils can also be used in stirling engines. This is slightly (10%) more efficient. Finally, the vegetable oils can be used in systems generate both heat and power (see Combined heat and power).

Vegetable oil extraction and conversion

The process of oil extraction is carried out the same way as for extraction of edible oil from plants. There are many crops grown in rural areas of the developing world which are suitable for oil production – sunflower, coconut, cotton seed, palm, rapeseed/canola, soy bean, peanut, hemp, flax, and more. Sunflower oil, for example, has an energy content about 85% that of diesel fuel.

There are two well-established technologies for oil extraction:

  • The simple screw press, which is a device for physically extracting the oil from the plant - this technology is well suited to small-scale production of oil as fuel or as foodstuff in rural areas. The press can be motorised or hand-operated.
  • Solvent extraction is a chemical process which requires large, sophisticated equipment. This method is more efficient - that is, it extracts a greater percentage of the oil from the plant - but is less suited to rural applications.

The oil, as well as being used for lighting and heating, can be used as a fuel in internal combustion engines.

Biodiesel production is not complex and can be done on a small scale. The vegetable oil is converted to a useable fuel by adding ethanol or methanol alcohol along with a catalyst to improve the reaction. Small amounts of potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide (commonly called lye or caustic soda, which is used in soapmaking) are used as the catalyst material. Glycerine separates out as the reaction takes place and sinks to the bottom of the container. This removes the component that gums up the engine so that a standard diesel engine can be used. The glycerine can be used as a degreasing soap or refined to make other products.

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Advantages

Biofuels are not made from petroleum; not purchasing petroleum products allows you to avoid supporting business practices such as oil drilling that are harmful to the environment and human rights.

Waste cooking oil is discarded by restaurants and other businesses and can be obtained for free or very cheap. This allows you to recycle something that would otherwise go to waste. Since the vegetable oil is not produced in respond to an economic demand for fuel, using it is carbon neutral.

Conversion of the engine

As stated above, pure vegetable oil can also be used in a diesel engine, and even then, modifications may still need to be done for running on pure vegetable oil. If the engine used is a petrol engine, it can only be converted to run on either (very lean/good quality) biodiesel, or alternatively pure ethanol.

Vegetable oil is too thick to burn well in the engine unless it is hot. To deal with this problem, some vehicles use a two-tank system: one tank for biodiesel or petrodiesel, and one for vegetable oil. The engine is started on diesel and run until it heats up, then the driver switches to the vegetable oil tank. When done driving, the vehicle must be switched back to the diesel tank in order to get the vegetable oil out of the fuel lines; otherwise, the lines will still be full of vegetable oil when the car is next started, and it will be difficult to start.

Oil that is not hot enough when it enters the engine will not burn properly and will cause buildup that will damage the engine.

Waste vegetable oil must be filtered and water must be removed before it can be used as fuel, or it will damage the engine.

Two-tank system

Processes for converting to vegetable oil vary. One process is outlined below.

In the two-tank system, the following modifications are made:

  • A second gas tank is added; this can be a purchased gas tank or another receptacle that can hold fuel, such as a bucket.
  • The new tank is installed somewhere on the vehicle, e.g. in the trunk.
  • A valve is installed that allows the driver to switch from one tank to the other. It uses electricity from the vehicle's battery, and a switch is installed in the vehicle that the driver can switch.
  • An extra fuel filter is installed in the vehicle to filter particles and water out of the vegetable oil. Hoses can be spliced from the coolant system and run to this filter; this brings hot coolant to the filter and heats it up, in order to get the oil hotter.
  • Fuel lines are run from the tank that will hold diesel to the valve that allows switching between tanks.
  • Fuel lines are run from the tank that will hold vegetable oil to the new filter, and from there to the valve that allows switching between tanks.
  • A heater is installed near the fuel injectors to ensure that oil is as hot as possible before it enters the engine.
  • Fuel lines are run from the valve to the vehicle's fuel pump, then to the heater, then to the fuel injectors.
  • Return lines are added that return unused diesel to the diesel tank.
  • A buzzer is installed that sounds when the vehicle is turned off and the tank is still set to vegetable oil. This warns the driver that they forgot to purge vegetable oil from the fuel lines and the vehicle may not start next time. When this happens, the driver turns the vehicle back on (possible since the engine is still hot) and switches to the diesel tank and runs it long enough to replace the oil in the fuel lines with diesel.

See also

External links

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