Biodiesel refers to short chain alkyl methyl or ethyl esters, non-petroleum-based diesel fuel consisting of and made of vegetable oil or animal fat, which can be used alone, and or blended with a conventional diesel fuel in an unmodified diesel-engine vehicles.  

Sunflower – A Rich Source of Biodiesel Oil (Photo by snowdeal)

Actually anybody can make this environmentally friendly fuel, you can even make it straight out of your kitchen and straight to your vehicle. Your engine will run better, more quiet, and run smoother and it is environmentally friendly because it has less emission than a diesel fuel have.

If you use a used cooking oil, it is fairly inexpensive, and you will be helping the environment by recycling this oil and turning it to something useful instead of it just lying around the sewers and clogging it.

The Vegetable oil is thicker than either diesel fuel or a biodiesel. The reason of mixing vegetable oil with other fuels and solvents is to lessen its viscosity or thickness, so that a thinner fuel can flow freely throughout the fuel system and into the combustion chamber of the engine.  

Home Made Biodiesel (Photo by rrelam)

If you’re mixing a vegetable oil with diesel or kerosene you are still using what we call fossil fuel, it has lesser emission, but still it is not clean enough. And still, for every 4 liters of vegetable oil you use, that is 4 liters of fuel saved, and it is 4 litters less of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere.

Most people use different proportion of diesel and vegetable oil, from 10% vegetable oil to 90% vegetable oil. It is up to you to decide which has a better effect on your engine. All engines are not alike, so chose wisely. To do it correctly you will need the amount the proper vegetable oil running in your system with the fuel pre-heating. In which case there’s no need for mixes.

Blends of vegetable oil with various solvents, such as, mothballs, paint-stripper or turpentine or with an unleaded gasoline are still experimental and nothing is known about their effects on the engine and the mileage. It is not recommended to use these blends, use it at your own risk.  

Testing The Home Made Biodiesel (Photo by Shapiromatron)

The viscosity is not the only problem of vegetable oil as fuel. Vegetable oil has also different chemical characteristic and burn differently from the diesel fuel, that the diesel engine and the diesel engine fuel system are designed to use. Diesel engines, especially the modern ones, are the more advance kind of engine that needs an accurate amount of fuel in it. Tough as they are, they can only take so much abuse.

There is no guarantee that using this vegetable oil as a fuel in an older diesel engine would work. If you have the time, try to go to your mechanic and ask them if it is possible for you to use this kind of fuel.

Using different solvents with vegetable oil can compromise your engine. But these mixes can have one advantage in winter. As with biodiesel, some kerosene or diesel mixed with straight vegetable oil lowers the temperature at which the vegetable oil starts to ge

Are you happy right now with your living costs? I mean genuinely? Unless you’ve got money to burn, it’s plain to see that the rising cost of fuel is hurting your wallet more than anything else. By making biodiesel at home you will save money, you won’t depend on gas and also become environmental friendly. Click here to learn more about making biodiesel at home!