Bio 101 for dieselstop users - Diesel Forum

quinnmp · 08-28-2008, 11:39 PM

Ok...I have been running B100 in my 97 F250 for a while and am buying an 02 F250 this weekend.

I have gone through a couple biodiesel setups, done a ton of research, and figured I would share stuff with you guys as this site has helped me chase down several gremlins on my powerstroke.

I took two 4x10 sheets of 16 guage steel and rolled them into circles then stacked them on top of each other...Making the cone was tough. My sheet metal brake wasn't big enough so I used a bead roller. Started with a 48" circle with a 73* pie cut...rolled beads in the electric pneumatic bead roller I have and presto...had a cone.

Plumbing is 2" 316L stainless steel. I got all the tubing from a biotech client and had to cut it all apart and TIG weld it back together to fit.
One thing I can say about plumbing. There are so many different ways to do plumbing on home brew setups, and almost every setup I've seen I don't like. I built this plumbing setup from what I know works and my experiences and issues in making biodiesel.

Pumps came off a bioprocess machine and are chemical resistant and will do ~100 gallons a min.

I am automating the system so temps and pumps can be controlled from a web interface and I am looking into replacing a couple of the valves with solenoid valves so that I can automate the transfer and water wash process.

If anyone is interested in getting a home brew setup going I'll try to answer questions here...I am not claiming to be the end all be all guru of bio, but I have done lots of research and have produced thousands of gallons of quality biodiesel. I should also say I don't do this for a living and I am not here to sell anyone anything. I have done some consulting work to setup large biodiesel processors for small business fleets, but thats about it. Figured this site has given me lots of help and its time to pay it forward

biofumes · 08-29-2008, 12:40 AM

Nice setup!!

But how do you get rid of water in the oil?

Quote:

Originally Posted by quinnmp

Ok...I have been running B100 in my 97 F250 for a while and am buying an 02 F250 this weekend.

I have gone through a couple biodiesel setups, done a ton of research, and figured I would share stuff with you guys as this site has helped me chase down several gremlins on my powerstroke.

I took two 4x10 sheets of 16 guage steel and rolled them into circles then stacked them on top of each other...Making the cone was tough. My sheet metal brake wasn't big enough so I used a bead roller. Started with a 48" circle with a 73* pie cut...rolled beads in the electric pneumatic bead roller I have and presto...had a cone.

Plumbing is 2" 316L stainless steel. I got all the tubing from a biotech client and had to cut it all apart and TIG weld it back together to fit.
One thing I can say about plumbing. There are so many different ways to do plumbing on home brew setups, and almost every setup I've seen I don't like. I built this plumbing setup from what I know works and my experiences and issues in making biodiesel.

Pumps came off a bioprocess machine and are chemical resistant and will do ~100 gallons a min.

I am automating the system so temps and pumps can be controlled from a web interface and I am looking into replacing a couple of the valves with solenoid valves so that I can automate the transfer and water wash process.

If anyone is interested in getting a home brew setup going I'll try to answer questions here...I am not claiming to be the end all be all guru of bio, but I have done lots of research and have produced thousands of gallons of quality biodiesel. I should also say I don't do this for a living and I am not here to sell anyone anything. I have done some consulting work to setup large biodiesel processors for small business fleets, but thats about it. Figured this site has given me lots of help and its time to pay it forward

quinnmp · 08-29-2008, 09:03 AM

You can't see it in that pic, but the water wash water is treated with acid (vinegar) then once ph neutral goes down the drain...the glycerol is put in 55 gallon drums and most is dropped off at the water treatment facility...water treatment facilities like the glycerol waste as it helps produce gas which is harvested and sold. The glycerol byproduct also makes the best hand cleaner and we save some which is then reintroduced into the next batch which works to lower our titration numbers.