chemsample-caspiequestions


 * 1) What is Biodiesel?
 * 2) What is the origin of diesel and Biodiesel?
 * 3) What is the difference between petrodiesel and biodiesel.?
 * 4) What are the uses Biodiesel?
 * 5) List the benefits and drawbacks of Biodiesel?
 * 6) How is Biodiesel made?
 * 7) What are the challenges of producing Biodiesel on an industrial level?
 * 8) What is the difference between an acid catalyst and a base catalyst?
 * 9) What is the advantage of using an acid catalyst over a base catalyst and list some acid catalysts that have been used?
 * 10) How is HNMR going to help determine how much conversion from waste oil to biodiesel?
 * 11) Draw the formula of vegetable oil and fats?

CHEM KIDS!! Pick 3 of the 11 given, show number! Student A

3. Petrodiesel is a combination of 75% saturated hydrocarbons and 25% aromatic hydrocarbons. The formula for the hydrocarbons in diesel range from C10H22-C15H32. The major problem that arises with this fuel is that it contains both sulfur and nitrogen oxide, that is a major source of pollution. Also, it is hard to filter out these compounds (though methods are being researched). Another problem is that petrol is not as good a lubricant as biofuel. Biofuel is derived from biological sources. Some petrol products have a certain percent of biofuel in them to help with lubrication and bring down the level of harmful chemicals that exist. Biofuel is biodegradable and non-toxic, and provides an equivalent amount of energy for machines.

7. The challenges of a base catalyst are that the first step in the reaction has a poor equilibrium, with the reaction favoring the reactants.

H3C-OH + -OH <--> H3C-O + H2O

Another problem is that the base cab hydrolyze esters, which causes the fatty acids to be turned into their conjugate base. This ends up being a soap and makes the fuel impure. These fatty acids are present in waste oil, which is one of the most abundant sources of biofuel.

These problems do not exist with acid catalysts. The fatty acids with be transformed to biofuel. Also, with enough alcohol, the equilibrium with favor the products.

10. The NMR will be able to tell how much of the methyl ester product has been formed, OCH3, with respect to the triglyceride reactants, OCH. These peaks are very distinct and will be able to show how far the reaction proceeded.

Julia Valentino

6.click to view:[| step by step production of biodiesel] One way to create biodiesel is to recycle vegetable oil waste and then convert it back into its original form. The experiment begins with introducing heat, this will allow the reaction to take place. Also have to eliminate any of the fatty acids (usually forms as the bottom layer). Not removing this will ruin your experiment because it will turn into soap. Using alcohol will initiate this process. To purify your product you can use warm water. This step is after you remove the fatty acid layer.

1. Biodiesel is another alternative to the fuel we use now. It is made from organic materials and could very well change the world as we know it today in terms of living. Some of the crops that biodiesel is derived from are: peanuts, sunflowers, soy bean, palm oil, hemp, and algea. Another form of biodiesel comes from animal fats, the thing these two have in common is the long alkyl chains that are present in their molecular makeup.

5. One major advantage to biodiesel compared to fossil fuels is it emits less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Knowing this fact is very helpful to environmentalists because their main focus is finding ways to clean up the earths atmosphere. A disadvantage to a biodiesel fuel, such as sunflower oil, is the amount of time it takes to produce. Production of this oil not only requires photosynthesis, but plenty of land to grow it on if it was going to be used for fueling a car in replace of the fuel we use now.

//Student B// 1) What is Biodiesel? ... Biodiesel is an alternative fuel to petro-gasoline, used most commonly for internal combustion engines ... consisting (chemically) primarily of long-chain alkyl ester mol. Its primary significance is as a viable replacement to the increasingly expensive petrol and diesel fuels (being expensive, both due to the refining process and lessening resources).

2) Origin of diesel and biodiesel fuels? ... The process by which biodiesel is most commonly synthesized was discovered in 1853, well before the first Diesel engine. In 1893, Rudolf Diesel displayed his first running model of a "Diesel engine," and shortly thereafter, diesel fuel quickly became a viable world resource. Thus, their origins are from fat based oils (biodiesel) and crude oil (diesel), respectively.

3) Difference between petro and biodiesel? ... The primary difference between the two are the sources from which they are derived. Petro-diesel is derived from, and created through the refinement of crude oil. Bio-diesel is derived from, and created through the processing of fatty oils (commonly vegetable, canola, or peanut). Common method in creating biodiesel ~ [|Transesterification]

Student C 1.) What is biodiesel? Biodiesel is a fuel that is biodegradable. It's made of organic materials that are renewable and is often referred to as vegetable oil. 4.) What are uses of biodiesel? Other than being used as car fuel, there are different, unexpected uses of biodiesel. These include: cleaning up oil spills, making electricity, removing paint and adhesives and also increasing the lubricity of diesel fuel. The last use was important in order to not cause early wear and tear of the engine. 6.) How is biodiesel made? Biodiesel is made throug hthe process of transesterification. This is a chemical process where glycerin is separated from the fat of vegetable oil. This makes two products of methyl ester and glycerin.

Student D 1.) Biodiesel is a fuel equivalent to diesel derived from biological sources that have been chemically processed.

5.) __Environmental benefits in comparison to petroleum based fuels include:__ o Carbon monoxide emissions are reduced around 50% and carbon dioxide by around 78% overall based on the fact that the carbon comes from carbon already present in the earth’s atmosphere, not from its crust, as in petrodiesel. o Fewer aromatic hydrocarbons are present – a 56% reduction in benzofluoranthene and 71% reduction in benzopyrenes. o Particulate emissions are reduced by up to 65%, leading to reduced cancer risks of up to 94% according to tests sponsored by the Department of Energy. o Its higher cetane rating than petrodiesel, causes more rapid ignition when injected into the engine. It also has the highest energy content of any alternative fuel in its pure form (B100). o Biodiesel is biodegradable and non-toxic - tests sponsored by the United States Department of Agriculture confirm biodiesel is less toxic than table salt and biodegrades as quickly as sugar. o In the United States, biodiesel is the only alternative fuel to have successfully completed the Health Effects Testing requirements (Tier I and Tier II) of the Clean Air Act (1990). o Pure biodiesel (B100) can be used in any petroleum diesel engine, though it is more commonly used in lower concentrations. The recent mandates for ultra-low sulfur petrodiesel make it necessary to use additives to increase lubricity and flow properties, so biodiesel is an obvious choice. Even the 2% formulation (B2) is capable of restoring lubricity to the fuel. B5 is often used in snow removal equipment and other municipal systems. o Biodiesel is less flammable than gasoline or petrodiesel. Its flash point (>150 °C) is much higher than that of petroleum diesel (64 °C) or gasoline (−45 °C).

__Biodiesel, for all of its advantages as a fuel and for the environment, does present some significant challenges, both in its use and in its synthesis. Some challenges that the use of biodiesel fuel presents are:__

o Biodiesel has higher nitrogen oxide NOx emissions than petrodiesel. The higher NOx emissions may be due to the higher cetane rating and oxygen content of the fuel, so that atmospheric nitrogen is oxidized more readily. Catalytic converters and properly tuned engines can reduce these emissions. o While the flash point of biodiesel is higher than that of gasoline or petrodiesel, its gel point often varies depending on the ester composition. Most biodiesel has a somewhat higher gel and cloud point than petrodiesel. This requires the heating of storage tanks, especially in cooler climates. o Water contamination: Biodiesel is hydrophilic because of its oxygen content that permits hydrogen bonding of water molecules. Water that is not removed during processing or present from storage tank condensation causes problems because:
 * It reduces the heat of combustion of the fuel, leading to more smoke, harder starting, and less power.
 * It leads to corrosion of vital fuel system components: fuel pumps, injector pumps, fuel lines, etc.
 * It freezes to form ice crystals near 0 °C (32 °F), which are sites for gel formation of the fuel, decreasing its flow properties.
 * <span style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-top: 0.5em; padding-bottom: 0px; padding-left: 3em; padding-right: 0px; padding-top: 0px;">The growth of microbe colonies, which can plug up a fuel system, is increased by water presence. This is an ongoing problem for biodiesel users with heater fuel tanks.


 * 10.)** We will use NMR to quantify the percent of reaction based upon the integration of the methyl ester (OCH3) product peak with respect to the corresponding OCH peaks of the triglyceride reactant.

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