The basic principles of our technology BioDieselMach ®

The basic principles of our technology

Our technology involves the Bernulli principle, which is a case of the general energy preservation law for a flow of an ideal uncompressible liquid (no internal friction):

ρv²/2 + ρgH + P = const,

where

ρ - density of the liquid

v - velocity of the flow

H - height of the liquid

P - pressure.

The constant on the right side of the equation is called the full pressure. The dimension of all of the equation components is a unit of energy per unit of liquid volume.

This is called the Bernulli equation.

For a horizontal tube, H = const, and the equation will look look this:

ρv²/2 + P = const

According to Bernulli principle, full pressure in a stabilized flow of liquid remains constant along this flow. Full pressure consists of static pressure, dynamic pressure and weight pressure. The Bernulli principle implies that in the case of decrease of the flow’s cross-section, as the velocity (dynamic pressure) of the flow increases, which in turn, decreases static pressure. The Bernulli principle is also true for laminar flows of gases. The phenomenon of decrease of static pressure with increase of velocity of the flow is the principle of operation of various types of pumps and flow meters.

 The Bernulli principle works ideally only for zero-viscosity liquids, i.e. liquids that do not have friction with and do not stick to the pipe surface. In reality, experiments show that velocity of a liquid on the surface of a solid body always precisely equals zero. This is the reason that various surfaces, subjected to flows of liquids, always have some kind of residue; this would also explain the layer of dust on a ventilator.

The Bernulli principle can be applied to a flow of an ideal uncompressible liquid through a small opening in a side wall or in the bottom of a wide vessel. According to the Bernulli principle:

ρgH + P0 = ρv²/2 + P0,

where

P0 – atmospheric pressure;

H – the height of the liquid in the vessel;

v – outflowing fluid velocity;

Hence v = (2gh)^0.5. This is the Toricelli formula. It shows that the liquid flows from an opening in a wide vessel at the same velocity as a free falling object.

Quality of the feedstock oil.

Hydrodynamic modules, produced by our company, do not require pre-treatment of oil. Those modules can successfully process both refined and raw oil. The equipment can process multiple oil types, such as rapeseed, sunflower, palm, mustard, soybean oil, canola oil, if the oil’s acid number does not exceed 6. No modification to the equipment is needed to switch from on type of the oil to another.

However, to obtain a high quality biodiesel, the oil should be as close to the standards as possible. On the right, you can see a table with fatty acid composition of rapeseed oil.

 Rapeseed oil fat and acid composition

Minimal energy consumption.

The design of our system uses stream oil heaters; part of the heat is compensated by the reaction of methanol and alkali. This type of heating saves electric energy. Besides, the technology does not use excess methanol, which is always present in the end product (methyl ester) in a batch reaction process. And since the reaction time is drastically reduced compared to the old batch process, due to the stream nature of the reaction, the energy consumption is reduced 9 to 11 times.

“Single Pass” reaction.

The hydrodynamic technology does not require a second stage transesterification, unlike the old batch systems. Reaction time is reduced by several times, but the capacities of the system we build can be both small and very large with very compact dimensions of the unit.

Quality of the Biodiesel is in compliance with ASTM D-6751 and EN 14214 Standards

Minimal dimensions of the modules.

Our automated systems take 10 to 15 times less space than traditional system of comparable capacity.

No need for washing and drying of biodiesel, no methanol recovery.

In traditional systems obtaining biodiesel of appropriate quality takes a lot of effort. The product of the transesterification in the traditional technologies contains a lot of contaminants, which must be removed. This dictates the need for additional equipment, such as biodiesel washing (usually with a mixture of water and alcohol) and thermovacuum drying system.

The hydrodynamic method neither washing nor drying biodiesel is needed, hence no need to dispose of the waste water and other substances.

Component ratio:

Vegetable oil: 100 kg

Methanol: 12.8 liters

KOH: 0.9 kg

Energy: 11 kW/hr per 1000 liters of oil

Temperature of feedstock oil: 20C

Temperature of feedstock oil: 35C

Versatility of the equipment.

An important point to consider when selling the product (biodiesel) to the end user is its usability in specific climatic conditions, and its compatibility with specific engines. Cold climatic conditions require special additives to raise clod point of the fuel. Such additives are called ‘depressants’.

The process of blending the additives with biodiesel requires special equipment and special technologies. The hydrodynamic blenders are perfectly suited for this task. They have a very high capacity: from 1 to 60 cubic meters per hour with two to seven components.

We supply special blending units which can be used for biodiesel blends with petroleum diesel, as well as for blending biodiesel with various additives. Those units can also be used to prepare fine blends of various liquid substances.

Some uses for blending equipment:

-         Gasoline blending

The unit USB-18 (USB-60) can be used for compounding two to five separate components, including low octane gasoline with additives. This can be useful to filling stations, oil processing plants and foodstuffs industry.

Other known blending technologies lead to a product which will separate over time. The greatest advantage of our blending machine is that the blend will remain stable for up to 180 days guaranteed.

-         Diesel blending

Conventional diesel, besides hydrocarbons, contains molecules of water, parathion, sulfur and solid contaminants. Most of the fuel molecules remain in polymerized state, therefore, when the fuel is ignited, the burning process starts in the active part of every large polymeric chain. Thus, the process of combustion will be retarded by water molecule collisions, while sulfur and parafins will not burn completely, which will lead to formation of toxic exhaust and generally slow combustion.

High frequency hydrodynamic treatment of diesel fuel in hydrodynamic compounders leads to a number of positive changes in fuel performance, specifically concerning energy value and combustion quality. The polymeric molecular chains are broken, therefore the active part of molecules multiply, and combustions runs faster and more efficiently.

When the molecules are broken hydrodynamically, the molecular ties are broken, and free radicals, which have a much higher combustion capabilities than closed molecules, appear. The polymeric water molecule chains are broken as well, forming free radicals -H and –OH, which burn actively and form unstable compounds with free organic radicals, which are easily oxidized. Sulfur and parathin form surface active substances in the process of hydrodynamic treatment, which surround the emulsion’s particles and prevent them from further compounding.

-         Water-bitumen emulsions

‘Cold’ technologies of bitumen construction material production are now becoming widespread. These materials include asphalt-concrete, roofing, water-proofing etc.

The most appropriate application for water-bitumen emulsions is the road construction and repairs. As compared to traditional hot binding bitumen, the water-bitumen emulsions economize up to 30% bitumen, 40% gravel and 33% energy. Application of the emulsions guarantees high traction between the existing lower layer and the new layer, high wear resistance of the layer, possibility to conduct road construction from early spring till late autumn in temperatures higher than 5C and possibility to lay the new road top onto wet surface.

Water-bitumen emulsions consist of dispersed bitumen particles, water and special emulsifying additives, which stabilize the blend. These additives are environmentally friendly and easy to transport and store.

-         Blends of biodiesel and petroleum diesel

Hydrodynamic blending allows for creation of highly homogenous blends of biodiesel and petrochemical diesel, in appropriate component proportions, which is made possible by high precision dosing system. Qualities of the resulting blend can be altered by introduction of various additives into the blend, which can adjust fuel storage stability, clouding point and other performance characteristics. The blends obtained with our technology are molecular grade, which directly results in the compound fuel retaining its qualities for extended periods of time.

Continuous stream biodiesel production system.

           The process is as follows: feedstock oil from vessel 1 is fed to the hydrodynamic compounder CGD through mesh filter F1 and stream oil heater PPM by the pump H1. The oil stream is controlled with the flowmeter P1. A pre-mixed methanol catalyst solution is fed from vessel 3 to the compounder vacuum chamber through VR regulator and flowmeter P2. Mixing of the solution is performed by the pump H2. The solution is taken from vessels 3 in turn.

           The final stage of the reaction is performed in the mixing pump HK1. Intensive cavitation processes in the hydrodynamic compounder and the mixing pump break the molecular chains of fatty acids, which significantly boosts reaction speed and increases fuel performance.

           After the mixing pump, the mixture goes to settling columns 4, where it separates into biodiesel and glycerin. The fuel then passes through moisture separator FBO and the pump H3.

           The system can be fitted with automatic controls, which increase the price somewhat, but minimize the probability of a human error that could lower the quality of the finished product. The system and its components, except for vessels 1 and 2, must be placed in heated premises.

           Biodieselmach® units can be supplied in several variants, with capacity ranging from 1 to 16 cubic meters per hour (16 cu. M per hr. approximately equals 30 MMgy).

           The system can be shipped in 20 foot containers, takes any feedstock, such as vegetable oils and animal fats, and is easy to modify and upgrade, as it the structure of the system is modular.