The Synthesis And Characterization Of Biodiesel Fuels

Switching from the expensive oil to alternative fuels has moved from a dream to reality. Today, there are dozens of alternatives to oil that are currently available us to be used. One alternative to oil that is being used more today is ethanol. Derived from plant materials, ethanol can be a cheaper, cleaner alternative to the gasoline that our vehicles run off. When going to gas pumps, one will notice that much of the gasoline is up to 10 percent of ethanol. According to our text, most ethanol in the U.S. is made from corn, yet ethanol can be made from any biomes-- including garbage. (Turk & Bensel, 2011)

Corresponding to the previous experiment, this week’s experiment measures the participants’ ability to conduct basic, fundamental laboratory procedures. These procedures revolve around scientific measurements of volume, mass, and density. Unlike last week’s activity, this week’s experiment had a few modifications. In addition to distilled water, saltwater and an unknown substance were added. There was a total of five substances to choose from; Hexane, Methanol, Ethyl acetate, Ethylene glycol, and Dichloromethane. Part C, the unknown liquid number was four, which the average density was 0.789 gmL-1, and from looking at the chart the unknown identity was methanol. Part A, the temperature of the water was 20 oC, which was in front of the class,

The need for energy is a dominant, driving the force of the world. Paralleling population growth, energy demand cannot be supported by fossil fuels, a limited resource with negative impacts on the environment. Currently, Global energy consumption is approximately 78% fossil fuels and 19% renewables. It is critical that the ratio continues to shift in favor of renewables. With the transition to using more renewable energy sources, it is imperative to fully understand each energy source and the impact it has on the world. Bagasse derived methanol is a potential sustainable fuel source that may largely shape the future. Despite its strengths and potential as a biofuel, bagasse derived methanol’s shortcomings should not be overlooked.

For over forty years now, scientists and researchers have been tirelessly searching for an alternative to fossil fuels. Biofuels have become an interesting contender in the search for the replacement of the non-renewable energy source. Biofuels have been used throughout history for over thousands of years. There is a large debate over biofuels and its true impact on the environment. Those involved in the discussion debating whether biofuels have any real overwhelming benefits compared to fossil fuels could argue for its usage. According to recent research performed by the University of Michigan, biofuels may not be the best alternative for fossil fuels. Regardless of its impact on the environment, biofuels are becoming more popular particularly when the price of oil rises.

Biobutanol is a more feasible alternative to gasoline. It is a more viable motor fuel substitute to gasoline, as biomass – from which biobutanol is derived from – is readily available for production and more importantly is a renewable resource. Gasoline is a crude oil product derived from petroleum, which is finite and unsustainable as a motor fuel, because it is increasingly being used up faster than it is being produced. It is expected that with continued research, biobutanol could eventually surpass gasoline as the primary motor fuel. Evidence proves that biobutanol is more acceptable environmentally than gasoline and conveniently, biomass is readily available for the steady production of biobutanol. Biobutanol is more advantageous

[Biofuels ‘13] Biofuels For Transport: Global Potential And Implications For Sustainable Energy And Agriculture. n.p.; Earthscan, 2007. eBook Collection (EBSCOhost). Web. 14 Mar. 2013.

Both biodiesel and ethanol are derivatives of biomass that have been processed to create a liquid biofuel. Both types of biofuels have been touted as secure and environmentally safe alternatives to fossil fuels, however the research verifying these claims is extensive but often contradicting. In the following paper, the efficiency and quality of the two types of biofuel will be discussed. The effects of variables such as source materials and production techniques on efficiency and quality will be considered. Due to the limited scope of this paper however, only generalized net analyses of ethanol and biodiesel production will be considered. The production of ethanol requires one of two source materials, cellulose

The biofuel that I believe to be the best is biodiesel. Biodiesel is considered the best because it is Biodiesel, also known as methyl linoleate, has been tested in our labs and has shown that it is a very strong contender to be the best biofuel. First, biodiesel has a very low viscosity, meaning that it can pass through engines without much trouble, making biodiesel easier to process for the engine. Biodiesel also had the highest germination percentage throughout the experiment when put against other fuels at a consistent basis throughout multiple molarity concentrations. This shows that biodiesel is the most consistent source of fuel when put against others. Biodiesel also has a very high heat of combustion, and thus is more efficient because

This experiment needed water, alcohol, and oil. To begin with, obtained a small amount of water into a test tube, then obtained the small amount of oil into the same test, and finally obtained a small amount of oil to the same test tube. Last but not least was to observe the reaction and record the result to the lab notebook. These steps were repeated with the same liquids but different order of liquids were obtained in the test tube.

In recent years increasing interest to methanol as an effective means to produce a ecologically clean fuel, available and cheap raw materials for the synthesis of various hydrocarbons and products of their processing. The most accessible and cheap raw material for the obtaining of CH3OH are natural and associated gases, from which by Fischer-Tropta's method it is possible to obtain hydrocarbons of different composition and structure. The formation of gasoline from methanol, developed in the present time flows through the stage of formation of DME, which turns further into the mixture of hydrocarbons consisting more than 50% of the valuable branched paraffins. Such "methanol" fuel in their composition does not contain sulfur and nitrogen compounds and a minor amount of aromatic compounds. Now, methanol increasingly became used as fuel and also as additives to motor fuels (from 3 to 65%). Methanol increases the octane level of fuels and reduces harmful emissions into the atmosphere. Based on the methanol it is possible to obtain alternative pollution-free fuels such as dimethyl ether (DME) and dimethoxymethane (DMM).

The FAME content of the prepared biodiesel sample was quantified by GC-17A Shimadzu gas chromatography equipped with a BP10 capillary column (25 m × 0.32 mm; phase thickness: 0.5 µm) and FID detector according to the standard test methods EN 14103. Methyl heptadecanoate was used as the internal standard. The conversion of the produced biodiesel was calculated with the following Eq. (1): conversion(%)=((∑▒A)-A_IS)/A_IS ×(C_IS×V_IS)/m×100 (1) Where ∑▒A is the total peak area of sunflower oil methyl esters, AIS is the peak area of internal standard, CIS is the concentration of the internal standard solution, VIS is the volume of the internal standard solution and m is the mass of sample

1.0 IntroductionBiodiesel is defined as mono-alky esters of long -chain fatty acid. It is a fuel that derived from the vegetable oils, animal fats, which is similar to the diesel fuel except that it is made from the crops. It is produced from domestically grown, renewable sources, such as crop oils or animal fats which are then chemically converted into biodiesel (Habmigren, 2003). Unlike diesel, biodiesel contains no petroleum products and free of sulfur compounds and aromatics (Habmigren, 2003). Until today, it is still the only alternative fuel for motor vehicle. The biodiesel blends have ranged from 2/98% (B2), 20/80% (B20), to 100% (B100) (Hafman, 2003). The reasons biodiesel is a viable alternative to diesel from fossil fuels for

The aim of this investigation is to compare the alternative fuels ethanol, and biodiesel to each other, and their predecessors in order to find out which is cleanest, most efficient, most powerful, and ultimately the superior fuel.

In the world of global warming, all kinds of pollution and fuel shortages going on, renewable and clean/ green energy is increasingly the ideal solution of energy related problems we have to solve one way or another. Biofuel is one of the mainstream and highly supported solutions nowadays, an idea to make renewable fuel by living organisms such as fiber, corn, vegetable oil or sugar cane. Unlike nonrenewable fossil fuels over extracted by people causing various environmental problems like generating a considerable amount greenhouse gas, current technology already lets renewable fuel like biofuels to shrink a certain amount of greenhouse gas production, making it a more ‘clean’ source of energy.

Biodiesel is a cleaner diesel fuel for diesel engines in many types of vehicles. It is safer for the environment and is a cleaner version of diesel. It is made from soybeans and other vegetation. It is made with a process called transesterification it seperates glycerin from fat or oil and then methyl esters and glycerin is what is left over and used for the fuel.