It's easy and cost-effective to

make your own

biodiesel. Shizhao, Wikipedia

Commons
Updated April 27, 2015.

Biodiesel is a diesel fuel

that is made by reacting
vegetable oil (cooking
oil) with other common
chemicals. Biodiesel
may be used in any
diesel automotive
engine in its pure form
or blended with
petroleum-based diesel.
No modifications are
required, and the result is a less-expensive, renewable,
clean-burning fuel. Here's how to make biodiesel from fresh
oil. You can also make biodiesel from waste cooking oil, but
that is a little more involved, so let's start with the basics.

Materials for Making Biodiesel

 1 liter of new vegetable oil (e.g, canola oil, corn oil, soybean
oil)

 3.5 grams (0.12 oz.) sodium hydroxide (also known as lye).

Sodium hydroxide is used for some drain cleaners, such as
Red Devil™ drain cleaner. The label should state that the
product contains sodium hydroxide ( not calcium
hypochlorite, which is found in many other drain cleaners)
 200 milliliters (6.8 fl. oz.) of methanol (methyl alcohol).
Heet™ fuel treatment is methanol. Be sure the label says
the product contains methanol (Isoheet™, for example,
contains isopropyl alcohol and won't work).

 blender with a low speed option. The pitcher for the blender
is to be used only for making biodiesel. You want to use one
made from glass, not plastic, since the methanol you will
use can react with plastic.

 digital scale [to accurately measure 3.5 grams (0.12 oz.)]

 glass container marked for 200 milliliters (6.8 fl. oz.). If you
don't have a beaker, measurethe volume using a measuring
cup, pour it into a glass jar, then mark the fill-line on the
outside of the jar.

 glass or plastic container that is marked for 1 liter (1.1

quart)

 wide mouth glass or plastic container that will hold at least

1.5 liters (2-quart pitcher works well)

 safety glasses, gloves, and probably an apron. You do not

want to get sodium hydroxideor methanol on your skin, nor
do you want to breathe the vapors from either chemical.
Both chemicals are toxic. Please read the warning labels on
the containers for these products! Methanol is readily
absorbed through your skin, so do not get it on your hands.
Sodium hydroxide is caustic and will give you a chemical
burn. Prepare your biodiesel in a well-ventilated area. If you
spill either chemical on your skin, rinse it off immediately
with water.
 Let's Make Biodiesel!

1. You want to prepare the biodiesel in a room-temperature

(70° F) or warmer room since the chemical reaction will not
proceed to completion if the temperature is too low.

2. If you haven't already, label all your containers as 'Toxic -

Only Use for Making Biodiesel', since you don't want anyone
drinking your supplies and you don't want to use the
glassware for food again.

3. Pour 200 ml methanol (Heet) into the glass blender pitcher.

4. Turn the blender on its lowest setting and slowly add 3.5 g
sodium hydroxide (lye). This reaction produces sodium
methoxide, which must be used right away or else it loses
its effectiveness. (Like sodium hydroxide, it can be stored
away from air/moisture, but that might not be practical for a
home setup.)

5. Mix the methanol and sodium hydroxide until the sodium

hydroxide has completely dissolved (about 2 minutes), then
add 1 liter of vegetable oil to this mixture.

6. Continue blending this mixture (on low speed) for 20-30

minutes.

7. Pour the mixture into a wide-mouth jar. You will see

the liquid start to separate out into layers. The bottom
layer will be glycerin. The top layer is the biodiesel.

8. Allow at least a couple of hours for the mixture to fully

separate. You want to keep the top layer as your biodiesel
 fuel. If you like, you can keep the glycerin for other
projects. You can either carefully pour off the biodiesel or
use a pump or baster to pull the biodiesel off of the glycerin.

Using Biodiesel

Normally you can use pure biodiesel or a mixture of

biodiesel and petroleum diesel as a fuel in any unmodified
diesel engine. There are two situations in which you
definitely should mix biodiesel with petroleum-based diesel.

 If you are going to be running the engine at a temperature

lower than 55° F (13° C), you should mix biodiesel with
petroleum diesel. A 50:50 mixture will work for cold
weather. Pure biodiesel will thicken and cloud at 55° F,
which could clog your fuel line and stop your engine. Pure
petroleum diesel, in contrast, has a cloud point of -10° F (-
24° C). The colder your conditions, the higher percentage of
petroleum diesel you will want to use. Above 55° F you can
use pure biodiesel without any problem. Both types of
diesel return to normal as soon as the temperature warms
above their cloud point.

 You will want to use a mixture of 20% biodiesel with 80%

petroleum diesel (called B20) if your engine has natural
rubber seals or hoses. Pure biodiesel can degrade natural
rubber, though B20 tends not to cause problems. If you have
an older engine (which is where natural rubber parts are
found), you could replace the rubber with polymer parts and
run pure biodiesel.

Biodiesel Stability & Shelf Life

You probably don't stop to think about it, but all fuels have
a shelf life that depends on their chemical composition and
storage conditions. The chemical stability of biodiesel
depends on the oil from which it was derived. Biodiesel
from oils that naturally contain the antioxidant tocopherol
or vitamin E (e.g., rapeseed oil) remain usable longer than
biodiesel from other types of vegetable oils. According
to Jobwerx.com, stability is noticeably diminished after 10
days and the fuel may be unusable after 2 months.
Temperature also affects fuel stability in that excessive
temperatures may denature the fuel