Above is my very first batch of actual BioDiesel. It is still settling, and I photographed it at dusk pointing east, so trust me whan I say it looks better than this. Much lighter colored. The gunk at the bottom (fatty acids and lye) is thick and black. Kinda cool.
The purpose of this test batch was to check the recipe for my veggie oil. As soon as I can source some methanol (I’ll need ~6 gallons) I’ll cook up a real batch for the car.
Update: Sunday afternoon. The sun came out for a bit, so I grabbed a better lit photo:
Yeesh! That stuff is pretty ugly! 🙂 But how does it test out? Any more acids in it? Are there any more tests you can do on it, e.g. testing the oils and checking for how little water is in it? And how does it run?
huh… now you are getting all SCIENTIFIC on me?! 😉
Since I did this on room temp stuff it will take a while to settle out.
Testing for water can be done on a stove top… heat to boiling point of H2O and see what happens. I imagine you have a higher tech method.
Oddly enough the method for “cleaning” it is to mix it with water, either by bubbling it through with an aquarium aerator or misting from above. The water will pull the impurities out.