Biodiesel

[Clive]

Page 190 refers: I am not against biodiesel as such, but it is not as simple as it seems. Sodium hydroxide reacts with methanol to form sodium methoxide, the catalyst in the process - this is highly caustic, even more so than straight sodium hydroxide. Also, not all diesel engines take kindly to biodiesel, something to do with the seals in the injection systems. I believe, subject to correction by someone with more knowledge, that this affects European vehicles, rather than Asian. Children, do not try this at home!

[lewis]

Thanks very much for that Clive. Can't the catalyst be flushed out of the biodiesel in the washing step?

[Clive]

Two separate issues here: the catalyst is a problem during the processing stage, I had assumed it would be removed before using the biodiesel. It is the biodiesel itself that adversely affects the seals in the injection system. In my previous post I referred to some systems not being compatible, I am not sure if it applies to common rail systems. Google, here I come.

[Clive]

Further to my posting earlier, this article http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/al ... ls/4311498 explains the problem.

[lewis]

Thanks again Clive. It seems that the problem doesn't lie with biodiesel per se, but the diesel particulate filter which is only there by law, and only on new vehicles. The DPF doesn't affect the performance of the engine itself and so could simply be removed if you did need to run a diesel engine on biofuel

[Strongbow]

Would you not need a a very basic engine for this stuff? The mechanics I use say that it is a bad idea to put it through modern diesel engines.Maybe we're now to advanced for such basic materials ?

[phred]

Biodiesel and ethanol (for gasoline) is well and good. I am wondering what y'all are going to use for crankcase and valvetrain lubricant?

[lewis]

Cheers Phred. Do you have any ideas on what rudimentary means could be used to provide lubricant for crankcases or valve trains?

[phred]

castor oil can be used as a one-trip lube in the engine. As soon as you shut down you'll need to remove all the castor oil before it jells. I don't have enough knowledge to decide what would be good for the wheel bearings