Why Biodiesel?
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Produced locally
Improved air quality
Renewable resource
Simple production process
Works in existing infrastructure
– Today’s diesel cars and trucks
– Today’s distribution system
– Today’s filling stations
• Brevard Biodiesel seeks to promote the availability
and use of clean-burning, renewable biodiesel fuel as
a replacement for petroleum by raising public
awareness of its environmental, economic, and
national security benefits.
• Brevard BioDiesel was formed in 2004 in Brevard
County, Florida.
• Web site: BrevardBiodiesel.org
Making Biodiesel
•Convert “3-headed” Oils into HydroCarbon
chains similar to petroleum diesel…
+
=
Methanol
H3C-OH
Typical Oil, three fatty acid chains attached
to glycerol.
Typical “Biodiesel”
Methyl-Ester
+
(Trilinoleic Ester, typical of soy oil)
Byproduct: Glycerol
aka Glycerine
Cetane – typical of petro-diesel
Making Biodiesel
Inputs:
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Vegetable Oil (“Feedstock”)
Methanol/Ethanol
Catalyst - “Lye” (Sodium Hydroxide or Potassium Hydroxide)
Water
Outputs:
– Biodiesel
– Dirty Water
– Glycerine
FEEDSTOCK: Low-FFA Waste Vegetable Oil
Biodiesel
Production
(Batch type)
Triglycerides
Free Fatty Acids (FFA)
Water
Catfish & French Fries
Catfish &
French Fries
Screen
Methanol
Heat & Time
Triglycerides
FFA
Water
Holding/Settling Tank
Triglycerides
FFA
NaOH or KOH
Transesterification Reactor
Heat & Agitation
Glycerin
Excess Methanol
Settling & Separation
Methanol Recovery
Distillation
Water
Glycerin
Compost
(KOH only)
Methyl Esters
(biodiesel)
Soaps
Diglycerides
Monoglycerides
Excess Methanol
Wash
Methyl Esters
(biodiesel)
Reversible Reaction
Equilibrium @ ~60%?
Boost using:
 Excess Methanol
 Heat (<148ºF)
 Pressure
 Remove some
glycerin & biodiesel
Waste Water
Soaps
Diglycerides
Monoglycerides
Excess Methanol
Filter
Pump & Drive
Copyright 2007 Brevard Biodiesel
Feedstock Choices
• Waste Vegetable Oil (WVO)
• Virgin Vegetable Oil
– Soy
– Canola (variety of Europe’s Rapeseed)
– Palm
– Other: Hemp, Sunflower, Camelina
• Tallow
– Human?
• Algae
Oil Feedstock Yields per Acre
per Year
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Corn – 15 gallons
Hemp – 31 gallons
Soybeans – 38 gallons
Camelina – 50 gallons
GreenFuel Inc:Algae in
smokestack filter stack
Sunflowers – 82 gallons
Rapeseed/Canola – 102 gallons
Jatropha – 162 gallons
Oil palm – 508 gallons
Algae - 20,000 gallons? (LiveFuels Inc.)
Valcent: Vertigro algae
Other feedstock
considerations
• Sustainable source?
Palm Oil – Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil: rspo.org
Sustainable Biodiesel Summit – sustainable-biodiesel.org
• Will increased biofuel usage minimize human food production?
(Consequently, the 498 million gallons of biodiesel that will be produced between 2006
and 2015 will increase farm level soybean prices nearly 10 percent by 2015. Using the USDA 2006
Long-Term Baseline forecast for soybean prices as a starting point, soybean farmers can expect
increased biodiesel demand to increase average soybean prices $0.58 per bushel by 2015.)
• Chemical properties differ – for example palm oil based B100
biodiesel will start to gel at about 55 degrees F!
• Is there enough? In the US we use 30-40 billion gallons of diesel on
our highways each year. We produce ~5 billion gallons of vegetable oil
per year. Another datapoint - New York City could produce 53 million
gallons of biodiesel annually from its waste greases … That is about
5x the annual diesel fuel consumption of its public transit system.
Production System Choices
• “Batch” processing vs. Continuous processing
• Small Scale / Batch processing / (“Homebrewing”)
– Appleseed “Open Source” Reactor (~$200-2000)
– FuelMeister (~$3000-$4000)
– BioPro (50 gallons in 60 hours) (~$8000)
• Medium/Large Scale
– Xenerga, Kissimmee, WVO, 5 million gallons per year
(MMgy) (~$2,000,000)
– ADM, North Dakota, Canola, 85 MMgy
Appleseed Processor
• “open-source” design –
improved upon by community
• Build-it yourself, $200-$500
• Kits:
http://www.biodieselwarehouse.com/
http://www.b100supply.com/kits.html
http://utahbiodieselsupply.com/
Range from $200 for hardware less
tank/vents, $700 w/tank, $2000 built
on-site.
Other small processors
Small System Costs/Sources
• Where/How to get
Vegetable Oil – restaurants, Prefilter WVO
http://www.thecarycompany.com/containers/ez-strainers.html
Water settles to bottom of waste oil, scoop from top
or press oil from seeds:
http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_supply.html#Oilpress
Methanol/Ethanol – racing fuel
http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_supply.html#meths
Sunoco Racing Alcohol = Methanol $205.00 for 55 gallons
Sodium/Potassium Hydroxide
Red Devil Lye = NaOH
KOH $2-$3/lb at http://www.braintan.com/
50lbs for $96 @ http://www.chemistrystore.com/potassium_hydroxide.htm
• What to do with Glycerine…
Making soap:
http://biodiesel.infopop.cc/eve/ubb.x/a/tpc/f/739605551/m/520604982
http://www.utahbiodieselsupply.com/biodieselsoap.php
Compost? – but probably not if NaOH, only KOH
http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_glycerin.html
Convert to Syngas?
Small System Regulations
• Zoning considerations. For example, City of Melbourne incorporates
Florida Fire Prevention Code
http://www.fldfs.com/sfm/florida_fire_prevention_code_2004.htm
• Limits on storage of material, methanol is one of most concern.
Recommend talking to nearest fire station captain before starting to
review your plans and configuration.
• Taxes
Federal excise tax: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p510.pdf
analysis of excise tax re: biodiesel: http://www.unclefed.com/Tax-Bulls/2002/rr02-76.pdf
FL State excise tax: ???
Larger Processing
Ultrasonic/Cavitation:
•99% conversion, 5mins
•50% less catalyst
•Higher purity glycerol
byproduct
Supercritical process:
•No catalyst
•High temp/pressure
•Continuous
Installed Cost Estimates
• Roughly $1 per gallon – e.g. 10 Mmgy plant costs about
$10,000,000
• Links to feasibility studies:
http://biofuels.coop/education/#feasibility
World Biodiesel Production
Government Incentives
• Jobs Creation Act of 2004 – Up to $1.00 per gallon tax
credit (to blender of biodiesel)
• Energy Policy Act Credits for using Biodiesel in fleets
(EPAct)
• Minnesota requires 2% of diesel in state be biodiesel
(2005+). Washington state B2/Dec2008. Brazil B2.
Thailand B2.
• More:
http://biofuels.coop/pdfs/13_taxes.pdf
Consumer Vehicles - US
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23% of US car buyers considering “clean diesel”, expect +15mpg gain, will
pay +$1500. Europe now > 50% diesel for new cars.
Europe average mpg: 36
Audi Q7 and A4
2008
(July 2007, up from 12% 2006)
US average mpg: 22
VW Jetta TDI
2008
Honda Accord
2009
Ford F-150
2009
•Also: BMW Series 3/5/6 (2008), Cadillac CTS (2009), Saturn Aura (2010),
Mercedes 320 series (42 states, 2007). Hyundai SUV. Nissan. Toyota. Jeep Liberty
CRD (42 states, 2007 B5). VW Touareg (42 states). VW Tiguan. VW Golf
diesel/hybrid?
Looking Ahead…
• Biodiesel can be a piece of a comprehensive renewable energy
solution.
• Feedstock selection can impact economic, environmental, and
chemical processes.
• Traditional vegetable oil alone is very unlikely to source the
transportation fuel needs of the world.
• Algae might prove an order of magnitude more important in coming
years.
http://www.unh.edu/p2/biodiesel/article_alge.html
“15,000 square miles of algae ponds would be needed to replace all petroleum
transportation fuels with biodiesel. “
“$46.2 billion per year for all the algae farms, to yield all the oil feedstock
necessary for the entire country. Compare that to the $100-150 billion the US
spends each year just on purchasing crude oil from foreign countries, with all of
that money leaving the US economy.”