Production of Biodiesel Derived from
Montana Produced Vegetable Oils
by Taylor Lyon & Nestor U. Soriano, Jr.
Research supported by the MT Growth Through Agriculture Grant and
the NorthWestern Energy USBC Funded Renewable Energy Project
With the continuous uncertainty and increasing environmental impacts associated with the utilization of petroleum based diesel fuel, the demand for biodiesel has increased significantly in recent years. For instance, the global production of biodiesel has increased from approximately 500 million liters in 1997 to 1.8 billion liters in 2003. The environmental, operational and economic benefits associated with the utilization of biodiesel as an alternative fuel for diesel engines have been demonstrated by numerous independent studies and are well accepted.
Biodiesel, unlike petroleum based diesel fuel, can have a very different molecular composition based on the oilseed that is used to make the biodiesel. Published research on biodiesel has focused on soybean and rapeseed feedstock, neither of which is grown in Montana. This project aims at performing basic and applied research on oilseed crops grown in Montana including canola, safflower, mustard, sunflower and camelina for biodiesel production. It involves optimization study of vital processing variables such as catalysis, utilization of hydrodynamic cavitation, use of different adsorbents, water and dry washing, etc.
The biodiesel is being produced at MSU-Northern’s Biodiesel Pilot Plant, capable of producing 50 gallons of biodiesel per batch. The pilot plant is equipped with all basic unit operations typically found in a commercial biodiesel plant.
Biodiesel from crude canola oil is being produced at the MSU-Northern Biodiesel Pilot Plant. Pictured is Taylor Lyon (back) and Dr. Soriano (front).
All biodiesel finished products are being analyzed at the Bio-Energy Center’s Fuel Chemistry Lab in accordance with ASTM D6751 testing standards. Performance and emission testing will be conducted as well, using the Center’s engine dynamometer and AVL SESAM FT-IR Emission Analyzer.