Finding a Better Way to Make Biodiesel

Iowa State scientists, led by Victor Lin, have developed nanospheres, only 250 billionth of a meter in diameter, containing a catalyst that could revolutionize the production of biodiesel.  The nanospheres replace the sodium hydroxide, usually used as the catalyst, eliminating the acid neutralization, water wash and separation steps associated with recovering the biodiesel from the chemical mixture.

Lin has developed a nanotechnology that accurately controls the production of tiny, uniformly shaped silica particles. Running all the way through the particles are honeycombs of relatively large channels that can be filled with a catalyst that reacts with soybean oil to create biodiesel. The particles can also be loaded with chemical gatekeepers that encourage the soybean oil to enter the channels where chemical reactions take place. The results include faster conversion to biodiesel, a catalyst that can be recycled and elimination of the neutralization and water wash steps in the production process. The particles themselves are environmentally safe because they are made of calcium and sand.

Lin's particles can also be used as a catalyst to efficiently convert animal fats into biodiesel by creating a mixed oxide catalyst that has both acidic and basic catalytic sites. Acidic catalysts on the particle can convert the free fatty acids to biodiesel while basic catalysts can convert the oils into fuel.

They're working with the West Central Cooperative in Ralston to test their discoveries on a larger scale. Larry Breeding, the general manager of biodiesel operations for the West Central Cooperative, said the technology shows promise for improving the efficiency of biodiesel production. But he said it still needs to be tested at larger and larger scales to see if the economic benefits are there. Tests also need to prove if the technology works in continuous-flow production rather than batch-by-batch production.

Finding a Better Way to Make Biodiesel, Iowa State press release, April 14, 2006

Comments

[Castor Oil]

This is certainly interesting...but it does not eliminate the need for a catalyst, does it...you will still need a catalyst equivalent to be present in the pores of the honeycomb structure...I guess the catalyst can be recycled in the usual transesterification process as well? Perhaps the efficiencies in the new process come from the fact that there needs to be no neutralisation, washing etc...

Sounds good, thanks for the update

CO @ Biodiesel from Castor Oil

[Mark Mohr]

There is another way to enhance the catalyst activity. Ultrasonication improves the mixing and reduces the catalyst requirement. It reduces the conversion time drastically, too. There is more information at: Hielscher Ultrasonics: Ultrasonic Transesterification of Biodiesel This process seems to be available in commercial scale already.