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Biodiesel plant - The Koldrυn
technology
The Koldrυn technology is
now available to companies anywhere in the world
with plans, drawings, parts lists etc available
with a license agreement. We have found this
to be more practicle than trying to export machinery
from the UK and allows us to concentrate on
the technology rather than manufacture, with
savings in cost to our customers, who can deal
directly with their local engineering company
rather than through us, the middle man. For
detailed information about our license agreements
please download: license
agreements.
Above is shown a computer generated
representation of a Koldrυn 5000 plant
with acid based pre- processing and Integrated
Flow. Storage tanks are not shown. Notice
how compact the plant is, how small and efficient
a biodiesel refinery can actually be made. The
unit is computer controlled and is so flexible
in operation that it can be easily made to de-gum
crude vegetable oil or pre-dry waste vegetable
oil.
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Goat industries
has worked on several different biodiesel projects
providing engineering design expertise and fitting
skills. Size has varied from an ambitious 24,000
litres a day continuous flow system to a community
based 1,500 litres a day batch process plant.
We have one machine that has been in successful
commercial production for two years now. All our
machinery is now based on the Koldrυn batch
design, as shown below, which has proven itself
to be the most reliable and cost effective solution.
To date, we have built three such machines, the
biggest being 3,500 litre, but we are now able
to reproduce this design for 15,000 litre batches.
The main advantage of this design over other processors
is that the biodiesel is made in one tank, from
start to finish, meaning less tanks, pipework
and pumps; saving space and cost. Biodiesel production
involves many different stages in which the main
reaction is only a small part. Our experience
has shown that to run this kind of machine efficiently,
each process must be carefully considered as part
of the whole sequence, with pipework, pumps and
valves carefully placed to enable smooth, uninterrupted
machine operation. We call this concept Integrated
Flow.
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The plant on the left is based on a
3,500 litre Koldrυn batch reactor and a 1,000
litre methoxide mixer. The biodiesel is purified
using an aqueous medium to achieve EN 14214. The
plant is capable of producing 2,500 litres of biodiesel
every 12 hours in Rapid Reaction mode and
EN14214 in 24 hours.
The biodiesel plant design features
these basic stages:
Technical advantages of the plant design:
- Space saving, mult-purposing reactor
- Very fast process time
- Easy to operate - less complex
- Cheaper to build as there are fewer pumps, valves
and tanks
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One of the first considerations
when looking at biodiesel production is whether
it is economically viable to make biodiesel. This
will depend on many factors, the most crucial
being the cost of the vegetable oil and cost of
methanol. We have created an online program that
will help potential customers work out this calculation,
the economic viability of a plant can be worked
out in any currency using our basic formula: plant
viability
Another consideration is the quality
of the fuel. Our machines are 95% computer automated,
from start to finish, ensuring that human error
is reduced to a minimum and fuel quality is
easier to maintain. The sequence that we have
developed for making biodiesel is unique and
quite complicated and it would be very difficult
for somebody to do every action required with
total reliability. With our computer control
system the PLC checks that the pumps and valves
are doing what they have been told to do, giving
extra reassurance that the fuel produced is
top quality.
There's so much information
about biodiesel and biodiesel machinery that
even though there's a lot of choice, it is difficult
to find a good equipment supplier. Some key
points to whatch out for are:
- Does the plant reliably produce biodiesel
to EN14214? (Many companies claim that they
can achieve the specification. If in doubt,
visit one of their machines in operation, take
a 10 litre sample, and send it to a lab for
a full test).
- How long does it take to produce each batch
to EN14214?
- Are there large scale machines operating in
the UK that can be seen?
- Does the plant include all the processes needed
to turn, say, waste vegetable oil into biodiesel
to EN14214?
- Can the plant process all types of oil?
- If we want to use crude oil, can the machine
de-gum the oil?
- Can our oil sample be tested for biodiesel
production suitability?
- Does the plant have methanol recovery for
recycling the methanol from the glycerol bi-product?
- Is the plant easy to use, ie is it automated?
- Is all the equipment ATEX approved? (It is
now illegal to sell non ATEX equipment in the
EU)
- Is the plant big enough to be economically
viable?
- Is the plant too cheap or too expensive? (If
it's too cheap it's likely to be no good)
- Does it include all the hidden extras such
as storage tanks (at least 6 are needed), pipe
work, auxillary pumps, control panel etc?
- Is there a business model available to assess
the financial viability?
- Does the company have an ethical and environmental
policy? (some companies are selling cut price
machines that are potentially dangerous and
will sell machines knowing that they will cause
pollution or environmental destruction).
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Guideline prices for biodiesel plant:
Koldrõn 5000 plant (5000
litres biodiesel production per batch):
- Reactor unit (200KW electric heating) + main pump
...
£22,000
- Distribution manifold + distribution pump
...
£8,800
- Control panel
.....
£8,800
- Computer controlled automation including PLC and valves
. £44,000
- Skid mounting
....
£2,200
- 1500 litre methoxide mixer + pump
.
.. £16,500
- Acid dosing tank
..
. £825
- Methanol recovery unit + control panel
...
.
£49,500
- Fitting and commissioning
..
. £38,500
- Total
..
..
.£191,125
- Storage tanks
..................... Not
included.
- 1 year's warrantee
... Add 15%
- 2 year's warrantee
... Add 25%
- Induction course into biodiesel production
Approx.
£750
- IPPC consultancy (UK only)
.. Approx. £10,000
Koldrõn 1500 plant (1500
litres biodiesel production per batch):
- Reactor unit (50KW electric heating) + main pump
..
£7,700
- Distribution manifold + distribution pump
...
£2,860
- Control panel
.....
£2,640
- Computer controlled automation including PLC and valves
. £13,200
- Skid mounting
....
£1,100
- 500 litre methoxide mixer + pump
.
.. £5,500
- Acid dosing tank
..
. £550
- Methanol recovery unit + control panel
...
.
£16,500
- Fitting and commissioning
..
. £13,200
- Total
..
..
.£63,250
- Storage tanks
.....................
Not
included.
- 1 year's warrantee
... Add 15%
- 2 year's warrantee
... Add 25%
- Induction course into biodiesel production
Approx.
£750
- IPPC consultancy (UK only)
.. Approx. £10,000
We encourage potential customers to bring samples
of their oil to the pilot plant in Bangor, North Wales,
UK, to be converted into biodiesel 'whilst they watch'.
This ensures that the oil that is intended to be used has
been proven, both to us and our customers, to produce top
quality biodiesel. The fee for this service is currently
£250 and includes b & b for one person but does
not include lab tests. We can run waste oil through the
machine, but it is dificult to give a warranttee that the
machine will reliably hit EN14214 on waste oil as it can
often contain some very complex pollutants.
The specification of the fuel will depend on the
feedstock and on the production method employed. As a guide,
2 batches taking 12 hours each should be possible each day,
but to achieve EN14214 you'll need 24 hours for each batch.
Maintenance of the machinery is minimal and none or minimal
cleaning is required between batches. We do not quote for
buildings, storage tanks or auxiliary equipment such as
compressors etc. The lead-time for equipment is currently
4 months but is dependant on the particular item required.
Sales of biodiesel plant are subject to terms and conditions.
| Biodiesel made in the Koldrõn
125 plant in 24 hours using rapeseed oil |
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Unit
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Austrian Standard C1190 Feb. 91
1)
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DIN 51606 Sept 1997
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U.S. Quality Specification NBB/ASTM
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Euro Standard EN 14214
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Our values
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Passes EN14214?
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Density at 15°C
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g/cm3
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0.86 - 0.90
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0.875 - 0.90
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/
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0.86 - 0.90
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0.8831
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YES
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Viscosity at 40°C
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mm2/s
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6.5 - 9.0 (20°C)
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3.5 - 5.0
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1.9 - 6.0
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3.50 - 5.00
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4.51
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YES
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Flash point
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°C (°F)
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min. 55 (131)
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min. 110 (230)
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min. 100 (212)
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min. 120 (248)
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178
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YES
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CFPP
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°C (°F) summer winter
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max. 0 (32) max. -8 (17.6)
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max. 0 (32) max. -20 (-4)
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2)
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-11
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YES
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Total sulphur
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mg/kg
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max. 200
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max. 100
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max. 500
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max. 10.0
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1.5
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YES
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Conradson (CCR) at 100% at 10%
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% mass
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max. 0.1 /
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max. 0.05 /
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max. 0.05 /
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/ max. 0.30
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-
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-
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Cetane number
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-
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min. 48
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min. 49
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min. 40
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min. 51
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52.7
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YES
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Sulfated ash content
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% mass
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max. 0.02
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max. 0.03
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max. 0.02
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max. 0.02
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0.01
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YES
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Water content
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mg/kg
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free of deposited water
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max. 300
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/
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max. 500
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425
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YES
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Water & sediment
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vol. %
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/
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/
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max. 0.05
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/
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-
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-
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Total contamination
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mg/kg
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/
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max. 20
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/
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max. 24
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1
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YES
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Copper corrosion ( 3 hs 50°C)
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degree of Corrosion
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/
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1
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No. 3b max.
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1
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1A
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YES
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Neutralisation value
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mg
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max. 1
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max. 0.5
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max. 0.8
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max. 0.50
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0.31
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YES
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Oxidation stability
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h
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/
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/
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min. 6.0
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1.1
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NOT YET
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Methanol content
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% mass
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max. 0.30
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max. 0.3
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max. 0.2
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max. 0.20
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0.01
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YES
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Ester content
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% mass
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/
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/
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/
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min 96.5
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101.8
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YES
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Monoglycerides
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% mass
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/
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max. 0.8
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/
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max. 0.80
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0.36
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YES
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Diglycerides
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% mass
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/
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max. 0.4
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/
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max. 0.20
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0.04
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YES
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Triglycerides
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% mass
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/
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max. 0.4
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/
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max. 0.20
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0.01
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YES
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Free glycerine
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% mass
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max. 0.03
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max. 0.02
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max. 0.02
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max. 0.02
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0.01
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YES
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Total glycerine
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% mass
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max. 0.25
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max. 0.25
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max. 0.24
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max. 0.25
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0.1
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YES
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Iodine value
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/
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max. 115
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/
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max. 120
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110
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YES
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Linolenic acid ME
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% mass
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/
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/
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/
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max. 12.0
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7.98
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YES
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Polyunsaturated (>=4db)
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% mass
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/
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/
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/
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max. 1
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-
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-
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Phosphorus content
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mg/kg
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/
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max. 10
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/
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max. 10.0
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0.3
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YES
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Alkaline content (Na+K)
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mg/kg
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/
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max. 5
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/
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max. 5.0
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3+2
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YES
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Alkaline earth metals (Ca + Mg)
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mg/kg
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/
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/
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/
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max. 5.0
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0.14+2.58
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YES
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| 1) the world's first BioDiesel standard
ΦNORM C1190 (Feb 1991) |
| 2) depending on the national appendix
to EN 14214 |
Goat industries is able to supply biodiesel
equipment such as what is shown in the photos above for
small and medium scale operations. We have installations
that can be viewed in S.Wales, N.Wales and Luton. The N.Wales
biodiesel plant is a micro-sized
pilot plant which is currently being refitted for working
out how to automate the process using a PLC.
We get our biodiesel tested by Oil
Analysis Services Very helpful, efficient service
with repeatability stats as standard. They can perform
the whole EN14214 suite if necessary.
Why produce biodiesel rather than use straight
vegetable oil? ...... The biodiesel production process
breaks down the vegetable oil molecule into four smaller
molecules which effectively reduces the viscosity of the
product, making it similar in constitution to the diesel
that we buy on the fore court. The biodiesel product,
methyl ester, is generally much more acceptable as a fuel
as it has a set of proper standards that can be applied
which guarantees a minimum quality level. A huge amount
of research has been undertaken into methyl ester biodiesel
fuel with considerations such as emissions, engine durability,
fuel storage and environmental benefits being taken into
account. The current conclusion is that biodiesel is the
fuel for the future given that engines are being produced
with more complex fuel delivery systems to achieve greater
performance, cleaner emissions and improved efficiency.
Older engines, particularly the indirect injection type,
can be run on straight vegetable oil with reasonably good
tail pipe emissions and fuel economy but newer engines
tell a different storey. Newer engines are more precisely
tailored to the fuel that they use, which is generally
ULSD (ultra low sulphur diesel) and so need a biofuel
that has similar properties to this fuel. Biodiesel, being
of a similar viscosity and chemical constitution to ULSD,
does have a future in modern diesel engines.
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