Biofuel

Biofuel is a fuel that is produced through contemporary biological processes, such as

agriculture and anaerobic digestion, rather than a fuel produced by geological

processes such as those involved in the formation of fossil fuels, such as coal and

petroleum, from prehistoric biological matter. Biofuels can be derived directly from

plants, or indirectly from agricultural, commercial, domestic, and/or industrial wastes.

Renewable biofuels generally involve contemporary carbon fixation, such as those

that occur in plants or microalgae through the process of photosynthesis. Other

renewable biofuels are made through the use or conversion of biomass (referring to

recently living organisms, most often referring to plants or plant-derived materials).

This biomass can be converted to convenient energy-containing substances in three

different ways: thermal conversion, chemical conversion, and biochemical conversion.

This biomass conversion can result in fuel in solid, liquid, or gas form. This new

biomass can also be used directly for biofuels.

1-Bioethanol is an alcohol made by fermentation, mostly from carbohydrates

produced in sugar or starch crops such as corn, sugarcane, or sweet sorghum.

Cellulosic biomass, derived from non-food sources, such as trees and grasses, is also

being developed as a feedstock for ethanol production. Ethanol can be used as a fuel

for vehicles in its pure form, but it is usually used as a gasoline additive to increase

octane and improve vehicle emissions. Bioethanol is widely used in the USA and in

Brazil. Current plant design does not provide for converting the lignin portion of plant

raw materials to fuel components by fermentation.

2-Biodiesel can be used as a fuel for vehicles in its pure form, but it is usually used as

a diesel additive to reduce levels of particulates, carbon monoxide, and hydrocarbons

from diesel-powered vehicles. Biodiesel is produced from oils or fats using trans-

esterification and is the most common biofuel in Europe.

In 2010, worldwide biofuel production reached 105 billion liters (28 billion gallons

US), up 17% from 2009,[2] and biofuels provided 2.7% of the world's fuels for road

transport. Global ethanol fuel production reached 86 billion liters (23 billion gallons

US) in 2010, with the United States and Brazil as the world's top producers,

accounting together for 90% of global production. The world's largest biodiesel

producer is the European Union, accounting for 53% of all biodiesel production in

2010.[2] As of 2011, mandates for blending biofuels exist in 31 countries at the

national level and in 29 states or provinces.[3] The International Energy Agency has a

goal for biofuels to meet more than a quarter of world demand for transportation fuels

by 2050 to reduce dependence on petroleum and coal.[4] The production of biofuels

also led into a flourishing automotive industry, where by 2010, 79% of all cars

produced in Brazil were made with a hybrid fuel system of bioethanol and gasoline.[5]

There are various social, economic, environmental and technical issues relating to

biofuels production and use, which have been debated in the popular media and

scientific journals. These include: the effect of moderating oil prices, the "food vs

fuel" debate, poverty reduction potential, carbon emissions levels, sustainable biofuel

production, deforestation and soil erosion, loss of biodiversity, impact on water

resources, rural social exclusion and injustice, shantytown migration, rural unskilled

unemployment, and nitrous oxide (NO2) emissions.

Bio-feul methods of production
Biofuel is considered to be the most pure and the easiest available fuels on the planet.

Also known as agro-fuel, they are classified into gas, liquid and solid form derived

from biomass. Most of the people would be very happy to know that most of the

forms of biofuels can be easily manufactured even at in one's kitchen garden. One of

the key features of biofuels is that they are better than other forms of fuels like petrol

or diesel that is manufactured by most of the big oil manufacturing companies. Most

of the diesel engines would work more efficiently and even last longer with the use of

these homemade biofuels. These fuels are also very clean and environment friendly.

These biofuels can be a lot more economic if used in the kitchen for cooking purpose.

These fuels also encourage the recycling process as most of them are manufactured

from waste products.

There are various forms of biofuels and most of them are made through a detailed

process having various stages. Most of the animal fats, vegetables and oils contain

glycerin and are thus called triglycerides. In the process of manufacturing the biofuels,

all the fats and oils are turned into esters, separating the glycerin. At the end of the

process, all the glycerin sinks down at the bottom and all the biofuel rests at the top.

The process through which the glycerin is separated from the biodiesel is known as

trans-esterification. This process also uses lye as a catalyst in the whole process. Some

of the chemicals which are used in the manufacturing of biofuels are ethanol or

methanol which brings into use methyl esters. Methanol is derived from fossil fuels
while ethanol is derived from plants. One of the advantages of using ethanol is that

they can be distilled even at the home without any problem.

The process of manufacturing biofuel can be classified in the following stages.

These stages are:

Filtering: In this process, waste vegetable oil is filtered to remove all the food
particles. This process generally involves warming up the liquid a little. After
warming up the liquid, it can be filtered with the use of coffee filter.

Removing of water: All the water contained in the residual gangue has to be
removed which will make the reaction faster. The water can be easily removed by
making the liquid boil at 100 degree C for some time.

Titration: This process is carried out to determine the amount of lye that would be
required. This process is the most crucial and the most important stage of biofuel
manufacturing.

Preparation of sodium methoxide: In this process, methanol is mixed with

sodium hydroxide to produce sodium methoxide. In most of the cases, the quantity of
methanol used is generally 20 percent of waste vegetable oil.

Heating and mixing: The residue is heated in between 120 to 130 degree F after
which it is mixed well. It should be remembered that process should be done carefully
avoiding splashing of the liquid.

Settling and separation: After mixing the liquids, it has to be allowed to cool
down. After the cooling process, the biofuel will be found floating at the top while the
heavier glycerin would be found at the bottom. The glycerin can be easily separated
by allowing it to drain out from the bottom. The person is left over with pure biofuel
which can be used for various purposes.

Biodiesel production
Biodiesel production is the process of producing the biofuel, biodiesel, through the

chemical reactions trans-esterification and esterification. This involves vegetable or

animal fats and oils being reacted with short-chain alcohols (typically methanol or

ethanol). The alcohols used should be of low molecular weight being one of the most

used ethanol for its low cost. However, greater conversions into biodiesel can be
reached using methanol. Although the trans-esterification reaction can be catalysed by

acids or bases but the common means of production is base-catalysed trans-

esterification. This path has lower reaction times and catalyst cost than those posed by

acid catalysis. However, alkaline catalysis has the disadvantage of its high sensitivity

to both water and a fatty acid present in the oils.