There is quite an easy way to produce diesel fuel at home, and your knowledge from the school chemistry course will be enough to implement it.
Necessary
- Diesel-fueled appliance
- Used vegetable oil
- Methanol
- Alkali
- Alcohol
- Distilled water
- Pipette
- Plain tap water
Instructions
Step 1
Filter out your vegetable oil. To do this, you can use an oil filter or simply pull out any burnt food residues with a fork.
Step 2
Purify your oil by heating it to at least 450 degrees. As soon as water from the oil rises to the surface, remove it.
Step 3
Tetrate to determine the amount of alkali needed to create fuel. To do this, first mix one gram of alkali with one liter of distilled water. Once the lye is completely dissolved in the water, set the water aside. In a separate container, mix 10 ml of alcohol with 1 ml of oil. Add the lye solution to the oil and alcohol mixture. Add one ml of alkaline solution each time. Test your PH level regularly. The ideal PH level is between 8 and 9. Litmus paper will turn pink when you hit the right balance.
Step 4
Calculate the amount of alkali required. Most household fuel manufacturers claim that 6-7 grams of alkali is usually consumed per liter of oil.
Step 5
Using a blender, mix the lye with the methanol. Remember that this reaction can be toxic, so be sure to wear protective clothing and goggles.
Step 6
Add a liter of vegetable oil. Take into account your previous calculations regarding the amount of alkali required. Mix for no more than 15-20 minutes. If there is too much water left in the oil, a “soapy” layer will form. It will be very difficult to remove it.
Step 7
Prepare sodium methoxide by mixing lye with methanol. Heat vegetable oil to 150 degrees and mix with sodium methoxide. Stir the resulting substance for at least 30 minutes. Then set it aside for 8 hours.
Step 8
Your fuel is almost ready. It only needs to be washed from soapy sediments. The easiest way to do this is to wash the fuel surface with plain water. The water will liquefy the glycerine particles and dissolve in the fuel. After that, set it aside for another 12 hours - then the excess water will dry out. To make sure that the water has completely evaporated, you can heat the fuel for 20 minutes. Once you are sure that there is no excess water in the fuel, you can refuel.
