Lister Engine Forum

Alternative fuels => Waste Vegetable Oil => Topic started by: VeggieDiesel on April 13, 2008, 05:01:14 AM

Title: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on April 13, 2008, 05:01:14 AM
Hi All,

I finally got around to making a video of my WVO processor project.
The unit takes waste veggie oil and heats, dehydrates, and filters it ready for use.
1] Heat is provide by a barrel band heater (Can heat up to 225 f).
2] Filtration is provide by a Dieselcraft type centrifuge and a 1/3 HP gear pump.
3] Dehydration is accomplished using a 1/16 HP blower circulating air across the hot oil and exiting through a discharge pipe.

The video can be seen here...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIH97VQ6j8Y

The next step is to add timers for each function so that the process can be "hands-off".

For example.
1 - Start Barrel Heater and run for 3 hours (gets oil up to 190 f). Then stop heater.
2 - Start pump and blower
3 - 3 hours later, stop pump and blower.

Ideas welcome !!

Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: adhall on April 13, 2008, 07:07:20 PM
If you are looking for a clean and flexible way to control the time sequence and you like fussing with gadgets, you might consider a Siemens LOGO PLC. One nice thing about them is that you can program them using the buttons on the front--no seperate programmer required.

Here's on on sale at Flea-bay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Siemens-LOGO-6ED1-052-1MD00-0BA5-DI-8-DO-4-12-24RC_W0QQitemZ200214787989QQihZ010QQcategoryZ97184QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Best regards,
Andy Hall
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: cold comfort farm on April 13, 2008, 08:25:49 PM
Very neat setup.
Would you be so kind as to draw a schematic of the setup and where did you get the pump from.

Kind regards

Stephen
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on April 14, 2008, 05:51:51 AM
Hi Stephen,

I will try to come up with a schematic that I can post here.
In the meantime, you may find a bit more information here...

www.logicworks.ca (http://www.logicworks.ca)

Click on the link named "Waste Veggie Oil Processor"

Cheers,
Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on April 14, 2008, 10:26:44 PM
Jens,

Mist washing might be a good addition to my system.
Although I'm not sure if it is necessary after the centrifuge and the dehydration.
Perhaps some of the members who are running WVO could pipe in and tell us what they think.
The problem for me at this stage is that my tank drain is approx 1/2" above the bottom of the drum. Would have to modify the tank be able to  drain all the water.

To correctly asses the need for water washing, we would have to determine what is creating the "Tea" color in your sample and weather it's harmful. Anyone know ???
I suppose I could mist wash a small sample and see if I get the same colored water as you.

Being that the dehydration occurs during the my centrifuge cycle, I suppose I would do a water wash first, then add the heat/filtration/dehydration to finish.

We could expand the discussion to all WVO users and get a feel for what's working out there...

1 - Who out there is running WVO after filtering and drying.?
2 - Any engine problems associated with WVO useage?
3 - Who is washing their WVO fuel ?

Veggie

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on April 19, 2008, 06:02:50 AM
Stephen,

Regarding your question about the pump:

- Make: "Sterling"
- Type: Bronze Gear Pump
- Model: BJN
- Rating: 3 USGPM when driven at 900 rpm

There are many companies that carry a such a pump.
In Canada: Canadian tire, Western Pump (Calgary)
In the USA: Try Rona (Plumbing section), Eagle hardware,and most local pump shops.

Hope this helps,
Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on May 11, 2008, 06:07:52 AM
Hi,

I resurrected this thread to give an update on the solids removal capability of the centrifuge.
These small centrifuges (Dieselcraft) are quite effective at removing particulates.
The pictures below show the solids collected after running WVO through my processor for 3 hours @ 150 deg. f.
This was a 25 gallon batch. The oil was dark brown at the start of the process. When done, it was a clear gold color much like new veggie oil.

(http://www.logicworks.ca/images/Centrifuge-solids1.jpg)


(http://www.logicworks.ca/images/Centrifuge-solids2.jpg)


The finished product can be seen here being pumped into the storage drum....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPFEf4npBhQ

Cheers,
Veggie

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: CD in BC on May 13, 2008, 01:19:11 AM
A very nicely built unit indeed.  Quick connects I see too.  Well done!

I have no doubt that centrifuging works, (I've got one fixed up to use and am restoring a large one) but I'm also now wondering if a good washing system will achieve the same thing with a lot less hardware, and perhaps remove substances that even centrifuging will not?

Of course prolonged settling would be necessary afterwards I know.

Anyone compared the results?
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on May 14, 2008, 04:29:18 AM
Jens,

I am very interested to see if the combination of water wash and centrifuge is the way to go.
I one sense, I hope that there's no benefit to the addition of a wash because I may have trouble finding time to built it  :-).
On the other hand, I can't argue good test results, and if you discover that the wash pulls out things that the centrifuge leaves behind, then I seriously must consider washing.

Looking forward to your report,
Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on May 15, 2008, 03:49:12 AM
Jens,

Your point about the dissolved solids, acids, and cleaners is a good one.
Please let us know when you get it up and running. (I know you're very busy with the Genny building)

Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: cold comfort farm on May 27, 2008, 01:08:56 PM
I run waste veg through 3 filters
1, pillow case to catch the chip crud
2, 20 micron sock filter
3, 1 micron sock filter

All three are stuffed inside each other.  I dont heat (very often only when very cold) or de water or check PH.  I run my veg in an unaltered Landrover Freelander TD4 Common Rail engine.  I run at 30% winter and 40% summer (wvo) I have completed 10k+ with no change in performance or starting.  I just keep things clean and simple and have changed my fuel filter once about 7K.

I am not saying this has or has not damaged my engine ir pump??  This is what I am doing.  I would like to find someone close with a centrifuge to see if any more crud would come out.

Stephen
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on May 28, 2008, 02:45:56 AM
Stephen,

When you state 30% winter WVO, what is the other 70% ?
Is it diesel fuel.? I read that diesel and WVO do not react well at the molecular level.
Having said that, I'm certainly not an expert and I am open to correction.
I have a friend who has a company that blends diesel fuel additives. He informed me that (from his perspective) the best way to run WVO in a diesel is to blend 85%WVO with 15% regular unleaded gasoline(as a diluent), and add 100ml of cetane booster to enhance complete combustion.
It would be very usefull if you could keep us all updated as you add more miles to the Land Rover.
PS: Is the common rail Land Rover a "Direct injection" engine or Indirect?

Cheers,
Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: captfred on May 28, 2008, 03:54:11 AM
Anything wrong with just plain ol' heating the fuel up ?  Start and stop on dino-diesel,then switch to  heated wvo  (up to to 90C) - seems to burn fine and i'd swear the engine runs smoother.  A friend was telling me to try spraying atomized h2o into the air intake to help decarbon the top end. Might give that a try this week.

Cheers, Fred
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: VeggieDiesel on May 29, 2008, 04:43:02 AM
captfred,

That works for Lister(oid)s, not so easy for land rovers and non-stationary diesels like the one Stephen has.

The big question that we can't seem to get answered on this forum is the long term effects of running WVO
in diesels. Maybe there's just not enough data out there to get a good report yet.
There does not seem to be any information about engines that were torn down after 1000+ hours.
My biggest concern is cylinder bore scoring from piston/ring coking (the expensive stuff).
Most any diesel will run fine for the first few hundred hours an almost any fuel.
Somebody posted some pictures of a long term WVO tear-down on the coppermine photo gallery but that's not available anymore.
It would be great if we coud view that information.

captfred, please keep us posted as you put more hours on your WVO engine.
PS: Thats a nice looking setup you have there !

Cheers,
Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: cold comfort farm on May 29, 2008, 07:42:47 AM
Veggie, List,
I run 30-40% WVO to 60-70% diesel.  It mixes well. I even add the WVO after the Diesel and let driving around mix it.
The common rail Land Rover engine is a direct injection.  very high pressures involved.


This is a little experiment I did a few weeks back on WVO viscosity.  It was prompted by reading about adding acetone, but I now suspect that it just helps clean the injectors a little (my guess only)
Its a very simple drip test and WVO may act different under pressure but its the best I could do.

Apparatus:
1  x washing up bottle with the bottom chopped off, then invert so the little hole is at the bottom.
1 x measuring cylinder
1 x Thermometer
1 x Accurate weighing scales to help check repeatability of liquid measurement.
1 x Kitchen with wife absent at time of experiment (although she said it would have been nice to have helped)


OK I added 250ml of diesel to the washing up bottle and allowed it to drizzle out and timed how long the bottle took to empty.
I then repeated it with all of the below items. The experiment was repeated 3 times each and averaged the results.

Diesel @ 15c   30.63sec
vegoil @ 14.5c   1.05
veg oil @ 20c   49
veg oil @ 70c   33.45
new corn oil   51.31
   
veg oil 20% pet + 0.2 acetone   51.75
veg oil with 20%petrol   51.75
veg oil with 0.2% acetone   59.35
60% derv 40% veg    34.4  (similar time to veg at 70C)
   
   
veg oil with 20%petrol @ 70c   34.81
   

As you can see veg with acetone does not make much difference under normal conditions, it may have an effect under pressure.  Altering the temp of the oil is the best and main factor in reducing viscosity (but I am sure we all knew that)

Adding a few blobs of washing up oil made no difference to the viscosity either.

Girls and boys, don’t heat oil especially with petrol in it unless supervised by the fire brigade and St johns ambulance. 

No animal or human was hurt during these experiments.



Hope this helps someone

Stephen

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Dwelley on April 29, 2009, 12:57:06 AM
Vegie said :
I have a friend who has a company that blends diesel fuel additives. He informed me that (from his perspective) the best way to run WVO in a diesel is to blend 85%WVO with 15% regular unleaded gasoline(as a diluent), and add 100ml of cetane booster to enhance complete combustion.


Thanks for defining RUG - -regular unleaded gasoline!!  Also, your friend said 100ml cetane booster..per what amount of fuel?  100ml per 5 gal..100ml per 55 gallons?

Very helpful and interesting suggestion.

Regards,

Frank in Granby
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Veggiefuel on April 29, 2009, 02:55:01 AM
Thanks for defining RUG - -regular unleaded gasoline!!  Also, your friend said 100ml cetane booster..per what amount of fuel?  100ml per 5 gal..100ml per 55 gallons?


Sorry for the confusion.

For starters add  2ml additive per liter of WVO/RUG ..... OR .... 1/4 oz additive per gallon of WVO/RUG.

Hence 100 ml additive for a 50 liter batch of WVO/RUG.

The product I bought is called "Super Diesel Plus" made by LubeCorp Inc.
It's a diesel fuel lubricant for low sulfur diesel fuel which also carries cetane boosters.

I think there are many makers of such additives. Just check the specs on the container and see if it states cetane boosters.

Cheers,
Veggie







Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Veggiefuel on April 29, 2009, 03:11:38 AM

Diesel @ 15c   30.63sec
vegoil @ 14.5c   1.05
veg oil @ 20c   49
veg oil @ 70c   33.45
new corn oil   51.31
   
veg oil 20% pet + 0.2 acetone   51.75
veg oil with 20%petrol   51.75
veg oil with 0.2% acetone   59.35
60% derv 40% veg    34.4  (similar time to veg at 70C)
   
   
veg oil with 20%petrol @ 70c   34.81
   


Stephen,

Thanks for taking the time to post this data.

Two items of interest to me.....

Diesel @ 15c   30.63sec
veg oil with 20%petrol @ 70c   34.81sec

This confirms the above discussions that a blend of petrol and WVO can create a dilution with a viscosity very close to standard diesel fuel.
The question remains which is the best diluent?
Some members have noted a reluctance to blend with gasoline due to the hazardous nature of the diluent. I wonder if the hazards are greatly reduced once the gasoline is blended with WVO.??
Have you had an opportunity to try both diesel fuel and gasoline as diluents in your engines?

Cheers,
Veggie


Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Veggiefuel on April 29, 2009, 03:58:33 PM
Jens,
I agree. Vapors are a concern.
IMHO, any fumes at all from gasoline are scary. Although, I would prefer to dilute my WVO with RUG because of the convenience (No heat required), but as you mentioned, the vapors would have to be controlled. (I am referring to stationary applications. Vehicle fuel tanks would not be an issue).

Just wondering, people store lawn mowers, weedwackers, Motorcycles, etc in the garage. Most older units have pinhole vents in the gas cap.
A blended fuel might be much more benign and produce much less of a risk.
If a WVO blended fuel stationary engine had a fuel lid with a pinhole vent would that be a problem? Would that not be safer than traditional gasoline appliances.?

Veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: lowspeedlife on April 29, 2009, 11:12:25 PM
Small gasoiline engine fuel tanks vent both ways, air in when the fuel is used & vapors out when the fuel heats & expands/vapors off. vantilation is the key here, not allowing vapors to be contained & consentrated will prevent problems & mixing with WVO will help keep the gasoline from coming out of solution. Of course the best way to keep it in solution is to keep its temperature low.

   Scott R.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on April 30, 2009, 02:42:19 AM
I have a neighbor that uses kerosene as part of a diesel formula using WVO as the base.  Anyone else heard of this slightly different approach?

Casey
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Oiler on May 07, 2009, 07:45:00 PM
Don't worry about the vapours burning.
Because vapours inside a tank are so dense they cannnot burn and outside the venthole they are too dilluted.

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: lowspeedlife on May 08, 2009, 01:03:41 AM
I have a neighbor that uses kerosene as part of a diesel formula using WVO as the base.  Anyone else heard of this slightly different approach?

Casey

Hi Casey, in colder climates the use of straight kerosene is a pretty common practice. using it straight or in conjunction with WVO I think I would add some sort of lubricant to the fuel as WVO has little lubrication value & kerosene has practically none. I have used Marvel Mystery Oil in diesels for years, & it's red so it makes the fuels look like on-road taxed diesel fuel.   ;) ;)

    Scott R.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: lowspeedlife on May 08, 2009, 01:43:33 AM
Disagreement respectfully acknowleged.

SR
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: mike90045 on May 08, 2009, 02:04:40 AM
So - whats disagreeable?

Colored Fuel / taxed ?

WVO lubricity ?

Kerosene's value as a thinner?
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: lowspeedlife on May 09, 2009, 01:01:56 AM
Hi Jens, I have to correct my comment about the colored/taxed fuel, i was wrong.
 As for the using kerosene straight, I know several people who do it & several on here have made the same comment, I did not say it was smart & I certainly would not do it.
About WVO's lubricating qualities, I have not seen any info on it, if you have, I would love to see it. Until I see something concrete about it I would not risk my injection equiptment to straight VO without a lubrication addative.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Veggiefuel on May 09, 2009, 04:14:57 AM
Hi guys,

I've done a LOT of research on this subject. The last thing I want to do is screw up my beloved Changfa.
Fuel blending has been done in the UK for many years and until the goverment outlawed the blending of kerosene it was common to use it in VO. There are some users with a considerable number of miles on there vehicles using WVO blends. One key difference is that many of the engines reported are multi-speed vehicle engines rather than fixed speed stationary units. Blenders in the UK have now switched to RUG.
Many stationary test reports were conducted with SVO and the results vary all over the map. WVO blending tests are not easy to find.
I have studied many blends and mixtures, but there is a common thread of successful stories based on the following formula.
Let's break down the requirements....

Four requirements (of any blend formula) come to mind:

1] To get close to the viscosity of regular diesel without using heat.
2] Maintain adequate lubrication of the fuel system.
3] Maintain complete combustion.
4] Maintain a stable, non-separating mixture

To satisfy #1 we can add Kerosene or RUG as a diluent. This is not intended as a fuel. Its a viscosity reducer and the general consensus is that this component should not exceed 40% of the total mixture, with 15% being most common. The more you use, the lower the cetane rating of the overall batch.

To satisfy #2 we add a diesel fuel lubrication additive (which is now also recommended for dino-diesel due to ultra low sulfur fuels). This is precautionary. The viscosity of the final blend is still greater than dino-diesel.

To satisfy #3 we can choose a fuel lube additive that also has cetane boosters. Also, WVO can have dissolved fats that do not get caught by filters and can emulsify or coagulate in cooler temperatures or standing time. To satisfy this, one can add 1% turpentine which tends to do a very good job of reducing fats and preventing coagulation without effecting combustion.

#4 I intend to test for myself. I will blend various concentrations and let them stand at varying temperatures. I can report this data when complete.

Another point worth mentioning is engine temperature and loads. Full operating temp and loads of 80% or better should increase the chances of maintaining complete combustion.

Again, there does not seem to be any documented lab tests on mixtures such as this. I for one intend to proceed with this blend and document the results.

Please share any blending suggestions or anecdotes with the rest of us.

Cheers,
Veggie



Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on September 23, 2011, 04:42:01 AM
Hi All,

Evolution in action  ;D
Here's version 2 of my WVO processor....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI5-8hFWpSU&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI5-8hFWpSU&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL)

veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Horsepoor on September 23, 2011, 06:57:47 AM
I really enjoyed watching this video and several others on your site. I am amazed how pure the processed oil looks as it came out. Did you start with dirty waste motor oil?
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: deeiche on September 23, 2011, 02:31:27 PM
Hi All,

Evolution in action  ;D
Here's version 2 of my WVO processor....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI5-8hFWpSU&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI5-8hFWpSU&feature=mfu_in_order&list=UL)

veggie
thanks for the update

question
Do you know how much energy is consumed during processing? 
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: bschwartz on September 24, 2011, 01:44:49 AM
Horsepoor,

It's WVO (waste vegetable oil), not WMO (waste motor oil).
I don't think you can get WMO that color without re-distilling it.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Horsepoor on September 25, 2011, 09:08:56 AM
Thank you, I've been reading so many of the other WMO processing threads on this forum and others that I got the threads mixed up.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on October 14, 2011, 11:00:52 PM

thanks for the update

question
Do you know how much energy is consumed during processing?  
Deeiche

Yes...
Heater = 500 watts
Pump = 230 watts
Fan = 75 watts
============
Total = 805 watts

Warm up time is 1/2hr = 500 watts X 1/2 hr = .25 kw/hr
Process time is 1 hour = 805 watts or .8kw/hr

Total elec. energy used is = 1.05 kw/hr

In my area I pay 8.5 cents per kw/hr so total processing cost is 8.9 cents.

Now, if I had to process off grid using the listeroid, I would burn approx. 1 liter of fuel to do this job.
So, for every 20 liters of free WVO that I process, 1 liter would be used, netting 19 liters of product.

cheers,
veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on October 14, 2011, 11:05:42 PM
I really enjoyed watching this video and several others on your site. I am amazed how pure the processed oil looks as it came out. Did you start with dirty waste motor oil?

Yes. I take the collected oil and settle it for a week. Then pour it through a strainer into the processor.
I think the key to this system is to keep the batches small and try to get as many passes through the centrifuge as possible in a 1 hour period.
( I say 1 hour because that's what I targeted as a processing time )
That's why I reduced my tank from a 45 gal. drum to a 9 gal. (30 liter) vessel.

veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: dieselgman on October 14, 2011, 11:10:56 PM
Horsepoor, I believe Veggie is talking about WVO, not WMO. That is Veggie Oil, NOT motor oil.

What else would Veggie be burning anyway?  :laugh:

I think there is more than one confusing cross-reference going on here.

dieselgman
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: deeiche on October 15, 2011, 12:16:07 AM

thanks for the update

question
Do you know how much energy is consumed during processing?  
Deeiche

Yes...
Heater = 500 watts
Pump = 230 watts
Fan = 75 watts
============
Total = 805 watts

Warm up time is 1/2hr = 500 watts X 1/2 hr = .25 kw/hr
Process time is 1 hour = 805 watts or .8kw/hr

Total elec. energy used is = 1.05 kw/hr

In my area I pay 8.5 cents per kw/hr so total processing cost is 8.9 cents.

Now, if I had to process off grid using the listeroid, I would burn approx. 1 liter of fuel to do this job.
So, for every 20 liters of free WVO that I process, 1 liter would be used, netting 19 liters of product.

cheers,
veggie

thanks, that is the data I was interested in.

I was thinking in an off-grid environment one of the small aircooled horizontal changfa cousins (http://portland.craigslist.org/wsc/grd/2648207423.html) could directly drive the pump.

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on October 15, 2011, 02:15:18 AM
I went back and looked at this thread.  What a great education.  The MK II is my example unit.  I can't do nearly as nice work but it turns me on each time I watch the video.

In fact, I'm going out to the garage right now.  Thanks

As for energy consumption I rate the buffered oil to be worth about $4 a gallon so my 15 gallon processor will cost just a few nickels a gallon so a good return.  I also expect to run my biodiesel through the same processor.

Casey

(Next Day Edit)  I got the Ford cartridge oil filter receiver mounted.  I'm using it as a pump protector screen.  I bought the cheapest one I could find hoping it had the loosest filtering as the centrifuge will be doing the real work of cleaning the fuel.  Does anyone know where I can actually find out the micron rating for different Ford oil filters?
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: cashflo on October 15, 2011, 07:45:06 PM
I have seen oil that clean only after the seal was broken from a cubie. Your source must not fry anything but fies.

Any kind of breaded product darkens the oil from cooking.
There was a local guy that ran WVOPIPELINE.com that was running 2 gravity fed Simple Centrifuges and his oil was never that light in color.
He usually ran his oil through 400- 75 micron barrel filters then heated to 180 and settled for a week.
He had a sample tested at a lab and was certified clean to 0.5 micron +/- 0.25 and still wasn't that clear.
Ofcourse alot of his oil was used to make tortia chips a cantina and a chinese resturant that fried everything.

Personally mine oil is clear but closer to a light tea color because one of my sources cooks alot of breaded items and they use canola. Which is darker new that creamy (pho) is when it is heated up.

Don't take this the wrong way, I'm not calling foul but that is some really light oil.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on October 16, 2011, 01:37:54 AM

The oil I get stays in the restaurant frier for approx. 1 week.
It is darker when I pick it up compared to when it's finished
processing, but I have seen darker oils from some of the other suppliers I worked with.

veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on October 16, 2011, 04:02:56 AM
I just said Good-Bye to my original WVO supplier this week.  I learned a lot from them.  I learned that the hamburger palace up the road has really great oil.  Four cubies through the 100 micron filter before it starts really slowing down and a nice light transparent cream soda color.  Where the other place had about a third of the cubie filled with white clouded crap and the rest of the oil having the color of root beer.  It's really amazing the difference in standards different places to eat have.

My Ford filter block came with really cool braided lines but I think after looking at veggie's unit that I'm going to convert to "see through" lines on the low pressure side of the pump.  

Casey
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on October 17, 2011, 02:31:38 AM
Nice move Casey,

When you see 1/3 of a cubie as a creamy white liquid.....RUN !
That's saturated fats. Bad for WVO us burners and usually unwanted by bioiesel refiners.

veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: buickanddeere on October 17, 2011, 04:02:15 AM
Nice move Casey,

When you see 1/3 of a cubie as a creamy white liquid.....RUN !
That's saturated fats. Bad for WVO us burners and usually unwanted by bioiesel refiners.

veggie

  Not good either for the people eating the food cooked in the saturated fat oil.
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on October 19, 2011, 07:44:18 PM
veggie,

I noticed you've got a pressure relief valve in there where I see a lot of systems just using a ball valve to get about 90 PSI out of their pumps.  I've been warned against our cheap friend that is on most every water heater.  What are you using?  Do you have any other suggestions. 

Casey
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on October 19, 2011, 11:58:08 PM
veggie,

I noticed you've got a pressure relief valve in there where I see a lot of systems just using a ball valve to get about 90 PSI out of their pumps.  I've been warned against our cheap friend that is on most every water heater.  What are you using?  Do you have any other suggestions.  

Casey

Casey,
The R/V is a spring loaded, adjustable brass unit with 1/2" NPT connections.
Cost me approx. $20 at a water systems supply store (Water well pumps, pressure tanks, etc...)

It's there against accidental valve closure which might blow a fitting or hurt the centrifuge.
The R/V has a dial adjustment which is set at 90PSI (The upper recommended limit for the centrifuge).

cheers,
veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on October 26, 2011, 07:40:38 PM
Hey veggie,

Pressure Relief Valve delivered.  I looked at the Watts 530C valve on Granger for $48.  I googled the same valve and came up with the same unit on Drillspot for $26. and guess what.  It came drop shipped from Granger. 

It's getting tough to find things to procrastinate about rather than assemble this thing.  But then you don't get within 3 credits of a degree in procrastination and not be pretty damn good.

Casey
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on January 08, 2012, 12:10:14 AM

Hi Casey,

It's called "Fear of the final step"   ;D
Get on with it man !

And send pictures when you're done.

cheers,
veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on January 08, 2012, 02:13:13 AM
Gosh,

I got distracted this time by a solar project but I put the scrubber right in the middle of the path from and into the garage. 

When I finish the scrubber I won't have any excuse for not firing up the bio-diesel processor as I plan on using the scrubber as the final step in both WVO cleaning and biodiesel drying. 

But as I said a few months ago I'm running out of things to put in my way.

Thanks for the push.

Casey

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: carbon-rod on January 09, 2012, 08:10:23 AM
Hey Veggie! What happened to the video?? I wanted to have a look at this awesome setup everyone is loving :)

I am thinking about a centrifuge setup as well possibly, I guess it will depend on how clean the oil is when I start to collect it... they aren't too expensive either really 160 bucks is pretty cheap as long as you can find an old power steering pump and motor to run the sucker!

Cheers!
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: veggie on January 09, 2012, 11:09:38 PM
Now replaced with Version 2.0  ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI5-8hFWpSU (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI5-8hFWpSU)

veggie
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: carbon-rod on January 09, 2012, 11:32:16 PM
wow thats a great all in one setup! your oil is very clean I guess having it pass through the centrifuge 35 times helps doesn't it :) do you have a photo of the colour of the oil going into centrifuge? I am starting to like the idea of centrifuging oil over filtering.

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: LowGear on January 10, 2012, 10:12:58 AM
Hi veggie,

Great looking processor.

I noticed that your processing 5 gallon batches.  Why did you settle on that sized batch tank?

A picture of the "before" oil would be nice.  It sure is purdy when it comes out.

I noticed you're using a rather high volume fan.  Do I need that much air flow?

Casey

Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: carbon-rod on January 10, 2012, 11:37:53 PM
Bigger the fan the dryer the oil really.... if you don't have much water content then you could probably get away with a smaller fan but you can't really tell if it's effective or not unless you can accurately test the water content.

I had an idea of heating a small amount of oil up over 100c for a short period of time in a live flow system ie oil flows in gets heated to >100c water boils off then it goes back into the drum and cools back down to 80 or whatever is in the drum, this saves heating the entire drum up to a really hot temperature.

I don't know how long I would need to hold the oil at boiling temp to get rid of the moisture, maybe its an in-efficient way of doing it compared to a fan blowing :)
Title: Re: My New WVO Processor
Post by: Veggiefuel on January 11, 2012, 01:59:36 AM

I noticed that your processing 5 gallon batches.  Why did you settle on that sized batch tank?

I noticed you're using a rather high volume fan.  Do I need that much air flow?

Casey


1] 5 gallon batches for two reasons:
a] space. I have very little spare room in my garage.
b] I collect the WVO in 5 gallon jugs. I can pour it straight into the processor right after collection. No dirty oil sitting around.

2] High volume fan:
It's not really high volume. No specific calculation done there. It's the only small blower I could find which runs on 120 volt AC.
You need enough air to carry away the moisture when heated to 150f or greater.
The fan does have a cooling effect because the air passes over the oil stream as it falls back to the tank.
You will find it necessary to keep the heater(s) on when the fan is running or your batch will cool down.

veggie