Fuelmeister Biodiesel Processor - How It Works

After assembling your FuelMeister biodiesel processor you are ready to get started.  First we need to test the oil by doing a titration.  Titration is a very important step, it tells you how used your cooking oil is.  Then you know how much extra lye you need to add to get that last reaction finished off and turn those pre-fatty acids turned into glycerin or “soap”.  Titration is a chemical balance.  The oil has a certain amount of pre-fatty acids you cannot measure with a PH strip because it only works in water based systems.  Oil of course is not a water based system.  The titration solution has a calibrated amount of lye.  If you can put a known calibrated amount of this solution in and see when the oil goes from mostly acid to mostly basic, the indicator solution will turn pink.  When that happens we know we are crossed over.  At this point you look at your pipette to see how much of the titration solution had to be added to achieve a mostly basic condition. First you add about 10ml of titrate solvent which can be methanol to your test cup.  Then take 1ml of your oil to the test cup.  Next add three drops of PH indicator.   Fill your pipette up with the titrate solution to the zero indicator.  Slowly add the titrate solution to the test cup, as you add it the liquid in the test cup will turn from clear to pink then back to clear again.  As you add it swirl the cup around.  Keep adding titrate solution till the pink color holds.  Once you have achieved a solid pink check your pipette to see how much titrate solution you had to use.  Then refer to your titration chart which will tell you how much lye will be needed to make biodiesel based upon how much titration solution was used in the test cup. The extra lye will neutralize the extra pre-fatty acids in the oil.  The titration process will give you very repeatable results with your biodiesel which will insure consistently great biodiesel every time. It’s a good idea to log your titration results to see if there is any change in the oil you have been using.

Making Biodiesel

Now that you have your titration value, look up on the chart to find out how many ounces of lye you will need to add to the biodiesel processor for your 40 gallon full batch of oil.  Connect the oil feed hose which comes from your pump on the bottom to the top of the biodiesel processor using the quick connectors.  Next connect your methanol feed hose to the top of the lid making sure all connections are secure.  Then connect your vapor return hose to the lid.  The vapor return hose allows methanol vapors to return to the methanol container.  Open your oil input valve then turn the biodiesel processor on, pumping up your biodiesel processor with 40 gallons of used oil which works better if you preheat the oil to 120F.  Switch the unit to recirculation mode which will recalculate the oil from the bottom of the tank to the top.  Close your oil input valve.  Next open the lid and add one quarter of the lye at a time to make sure we dissolve all the lye in the process.  A total of 8 gallons of methanol will be needed for a 40 gallon batch, so each time you add one quarter of the lye you will need to add 2 gallons of methanol until you have a total of 48 gallons of liquid in the biodiesel processor.  The methanol will dissolve the lye.  This will start the reaction.  The way the direct catalyst system is designed the lye is spun around by the methanol doing a nice job dissolving the lye.  Reset the timer to run for a full hour and turn the motor on to circulate the mixture.  Disconnect the methanol hoses from the lid.

After an hour and the biodiesel processor is turn off, let the unit set for 1 to 2 hours allowing the glycerin to drop to the bottom of the tank,  then drain off the darker glycerin that has settled to the bottom.  You should see 6 to 8 gallons of glycerin from a 40 gallon batch which is 12 to 15 percent of your total volume.  When you see a color change in your hose all that is in the tank is biodiesel. 

Water Washing

After draining off the glycerin you are ready to wash your biodiesel.  You may wonder why I need to wash my biodiesel.  You want to be confident in the quality of your biodiesel.  You do not want any glycerin “soap” or lye left over from the process.  Water washing will remove those very easily.   Attach your water wash lip which has a drip system.  As the water droplets go through the biodiesel they will absorb any contaminates from the biodiesel collecting in the bottom.  The water wash lid has a float beneath it so if the liquid level of the water gets close to the top the water valve is shut off stopping the inflow of water.  As the water enters the tank you can slowly drain off the water from the bottom.  Because of the float in the water wash lid it is very little hands on during the washing process.  Remember oil is lighter than water so the biodiesel will stay on top.  The water you collect is like soapy shower water you can easily dispose of in a sewer or septic tank. 

Take a sample of the water and add three drops of PH solution.  If it turns pink keep washing if it stays clear you are done with washing.  At this point your biodiesel is 99.9% pure giving you confidence that you can use biodiesel in your vehicle long term without any fears with your engine.

Once the water is removed from the biodiesel processor drain off your clean biodiesel into you biodiesel drum.  At this point your biodiesel most likely will look cloudy.  This is not a problem because the cloudiness comes from a small amount of water that is still left in the biodiesel.  Next you want to dry your biodiesel.  The easiest way is to wheel your drum outside and remove the lid allowing the small amount of water left in the biodiesel to evaporate.  By the end of the day your biodiesel will be clear.

If you don’t have a sunny day or if you don’t want to use a band heater to evaporate the water you can get an optional dry lid.  The dry lid will screw on top of the biodiesel processor like the other lid then connect your recirculation hose to the lid and turn on your biodiesel processor.  It will take about an hour to dry your biodiesel.  You will see in the beginning of the drying process the biodiesel will be cloudy when going through the recirculation hose.  Once the biodiesel is dried the biodiesel will be very clear.  You should be able to see right through it.  At that point you will be ready to use your biodiesel.

Enjoy Your Biodiesel

Next with the biodiesel you made right at home simply turn the pump on and either pump it into a fuel jug or directly into your diesel vehicle and start enjoying your biodiesel!  Enjoy great satisfaction from making your own biodiesel fuel for only 71 cents a gallon.  Never worry about high fuel prices again!

• Fuelmeister Biodiesel Processor Workshop - BeyondFossilFuel.com's Hobert Pruitt attended the Fuelmeister workshop to get a better understanding of how this biodiesel kit works.
• Video: What biodiesel is made from

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