CHAPTER

INTRODUCTION TO BIODIESEL
AND GLOSSARY OF TERMS

National Biodiesel Board, USA

What is biodiesel?dBiodiesel is a drop-in diesel alternative, made from domestic, renewable

resources such as plant oils, animal fats, used cooking oil, and even new sources such as algae.
Biodiesel contains no petroleum, but can be blended with petroleum diesel. Biodiesel blends can
be used in compression-ignition (diesel) engines with little or no modifications. Biodiesel is
cleaner burning, simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, and essentially free of sulfur and
aromatics. Biodiesel is Americas advanced biofuel.

What biodiesel is notdBiodiesel is not raw vegetable oil. Fuel-grade biodiesel must be produced
to strict industry specifications (ASTM D6751) in order to ensure proper performance. Only
biodiesel that meets the specification and is registered with the Environmental Protection Agency
is a legal motor fuel.

Biodiesel is not the same as ethanol. Biodiesel is made from a variety of materials for use in
diesel engines, with different properties and benefits than ethanol.

Biodiesel, n.dA fuel comprised of mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids derived from
vegetable oils or animal fats, meeting ASTM D 6751, designated B100. (i.e., the pure fuel).

Biodiesel blend, n.dA blend of biodiesel fuel with petroleum-based diesel fuel designated BXX,
where XX is the volume percent of biodiesel (i.e., B5 5 percent biodiesel blended with 95 percent
petroleum diesel; B20 20 percent biodiesel blended with 80 percent petroleum diesel, etc.).

FeedstocksdThe raw materials used to make biodiesel fuel. Common biodiesel feedstocks in the
U.S. include:
Vegetable oils from soybeans, canola, camelina, sunflower, cottonseed
Dry distillers grain (DDG) corn oil left over from ethanol production process
Used cooking oil/yellow grease
Animal fats including beef tallow, pork lard, poultry fat
Future feedstocks including algae, pennycress, jatropha, brown grease, halophytes, low ricin
castor oil, and others

TransesterificationdBiodiesel is made through a chemical process called transesterification

whereby the glycerin is separated from the fat or vegetable oil. The process leaves behind two
productsdmethyl esters (the chemical name for biodiesel) and glycerin (a valuable byproduct
usually sold to be used in soaps and other products).

Bioenergy. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-407909-0.00002-X
Copyright 2015 Anju Dahiya. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION TO BIODIESEL AND GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Advanced Biofuel (EPA Definition 40 CFR 80.1401)dAdvanced Biofuel means renewable

fuel, other than ethanol-derived from cornstarch, that has lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions that
are at least 50 percent less than baseline lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions (i.e., diesel fuel).

Biodiesel is Americas first domestically produced, commercially available advanced Biofuel and
meets EPA requirements for inclusion and use under the new Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS-2).
US biodiesel reduces lifecycle carbon emissions by 57 to 86 percent compared to petroleum
diesel.

Energy balancedThe arithmetic balancing of energy inputs versus outputs for an object, reactor,
or other processing system; it is positive if energy is released, and negative if it is absorbed.
Biodiesel has the highest positive energy balance (5.54:1) of any commercially available
fuel, returning 5.54 units of renewable energy for every one unit of fossil energy needed to
produce it. Since petroleum diesel has a negative energy balance of 0.88, every gallon of
biodiesel used has the potential to extend our petroleum reserves by over four gallons.

Cetane numberdA measurement of the combustion quality of diesel fuel during compression
ignition. It is a significant expression of the quality of a diesel fuel. Biodiesel generally has a
higher cetane number (average over 50) compared to diesel fuel (average 4244), making
biodiesel a cleaner burning fuel.

ViscositydViscosity is a measurement of how resistant a fluid is to attempts to move through it.

A fluid with a low viscosity is said to be thin, while a high-viscosity fluid is said to be thick.
Properly processed biodiesel has a viscosity that is in the same range as conventional diesel;
however, the viscosity of the raw, unprocessed vegetable oil is much thicker than diesel.

Cold flow propertiesdThree important cold weather parameters that define operability for
diesel fuels and biodiesel:
Cloud pointdTemperature where crystals first appear
Cold filter plugging pointdThe lowest operating temperature in which a vehicle will operate
Pour pointdLowest temperature where fuel is observed to flow
Users of a B20 blend with #2 diesel will usually experience an increase of these properties
beginning at approximately 210  F.
Similar precautions employed for petroleum diesel are needed for fueling with B20 blends
during cold weather.

LubricitydLubricity is the measure of the reduction in friction of a lubricant. In a modern

diesel engine, the fuel is part of the engine lubrication process. Diesel fuel naturally contains
sulfur compounds that provide good lubricity, but because of regulations in the United States,
sulfur must be removed.
Biodiesel has excellent lubricity properties, and even in low blends of 12% it can
completely replace the lubricity that is lost in todays Ultra Low Sulfur Diesel (ULSD).
Without biodiesel added, ULSD has a lower lubricity and requires lubricity-improving
additives to prevent excessive engine wear.
ASTMdASTM International, formerly known as the American Society for Testing and
Materials (ASTM), is a globally recognized leader in the development and delivery of
international voluntary consensus standards. Working in an open and transparent process and
using ASTMs advanced electronic infrastructure, ASTM members deliver the test methods,
specifications, guides, and practices that support industries and governments worldwide.

CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION TO BIODIESEL AND GLOSSARY OF TERMS

39

The ASTM Standards for Biodiesel Are As Follows:

ASTM D6751 is the approved standard for B100 for blending up to B20, in effect since 2001.
Performance-based standard: Feedstock and process neutral.
ASTM D975dCovers petrodiesel and blends up to five percent biodiesel maximum for on/off
road engines; B5 is now fungible with diesel fuel.
ASTM D396dCovers heating oil and blends up to five percent biodiesel; B5 is now fungible
with petro-based heating oil.
ASTM D7467dCovers blends containing six to 20 percent biodiesel for on/off road engines.
Designed so that if B100 meets D6751 and petro diesel meets D975, then B6 to B20 blends
will meet their specifications; Important quality control is at B100 level.
BQ-9000dBQ-9000 is a cooperative and voluntary fuel-quality management program for the
accreditation of laboratories, producers, and marketers of biodiesel fuel. The program is a unique
combination of the ASTM standard for biodiesel, ASTM D6751, and a quality-systems program
that includes storage, sampling, testing, blending, shipping, distribution, and fuel-management
practices. More than 81 percent of the biodiesel in the U.S. is now supplied by BQ-9000
certified suppliers. For more information, visit www.bq-9000.org.
RFS-2dRenewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The original RFS program was created under the
Energy Policy Act (EPACT) of 2005, and established the first renewable fuel volume mandate in
the United States.

Under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007, the RFS-2 program was
expanded in several key ways:

EISA expanded the RFS program to include diesel and biodiesel, in addition to gasoline.

EISA increased the volume of renewable fuel required to be blended into transportation fuel from
9 billion gallons in 2008 to 36 billion gallons by 2022.
EISA established new categories of renewable fuel, and set separate volume requirements for
each one (Biodiesel qualifies for the RFS-2 under the categories of Biomass-Based Diesel and
Non-Cellulosic Advanced Biofuel).
EISA required EPA to apply lifecycle greenhouse gas performance threshold standards to
ensure that each category of renewable fuel emits fewer greenhouse gases than the petroleum fuel
it replaces.

EPACT CreditsdEPACT stands for the Energy Policy Act of 1992, later amended by EPACT of
2005. Under Title III of EPACT 1992, 75 percent of a federal fleets covered light-duty vehicle
acquisitions in US metropolitan areas must be alternative-fueled vehicles.

Agencies also receive credits for each light-, medium-, and heavy-duty AFV they acquire each
year and for the use of B20 biodiesel blends. Simply switching over a diesel vehicle fleet to use
B20 biodiesel represents one of the most economical options for EPACT compliance for
fleets because no vehicle modifications or special equipment are needed in order to use biodiesel.
Visit http://www.fleet.wv.gov for more information.

CAFE (corporate average fuel economy) CreditsdThe U.S. EPA and U.S. Department of
Transportation finalized new fuel-efficiency standards on August 28, 2012. The new corporate
average fuel economy (CAFE) standards will increase fuel economy to the equivalent of 54.5
mpg for cars and light-duty trucks by model year (MY) 2025.

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CHAPTER 2 INTRODUCTION TO BIODIESEL AND GLOSSARY OF TERMS

Currently the EPA provides greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions incentives in the form of CAFE
credits to automakers that produce vehicles capable of operating on biofuels, specifically B20
biodiesel blends. However, those incentives under the light-duty vehicle GHG program are set
to expire after MY2015.

BIODIESEL STANDARDS

ASTM D6751 is the approved standard for B100 for blending up to B20, in effect since 2001
Performance-based standard: feedstock and process neutral.
D975dCovers petrodiesel and blends up to five percent biodiesel maximum for on/off road
engines; B5 is now fungible with diesel fuel.
D396dCovers heating oil and blends up to five percent biodiesel; B5 is now fungible with petrobased heating oil.

D7467dCovers blends containing six to 20 percent biodiesel (B6B20) for on/off road engines.
Designed so that if B100 meets D6751 and petro diesel meets D975, then B6 to B20 blends will
meet their specifications.

Important quality control is at B100 level.

BQ-9000 FUEL QUALITY PROGRAM

The biodiesel industry has an excellent fuel quality management program called BQ-9000
(www.bq-9000.org)

The BQ-9000 program helps biodiesel producers, marketers, and laboratories put quality
management systems in place to ensure that only the highest quality biodiesel meeting ASTM
specifications gets put into your customers fuel tanks.

This quality-control system covers everything from biodiesel manufacturing, sampling, testing,
blending, storage, shipping, and distribution.

The process yields an ASTM Grade Fuel, produced and supplied by BQ-9000 certified
companies.

Many OEMs are now either requiring or strongly encouraging their customers to source their fuel
from BQ-9000 certified suppliers.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This factsheet is published with permission from the National Biodiesel Board http://www.biodiesel.org/. The
editor is grateful to Ray Albrecht, P.E. (Technical Representative, Northeast US Region) and Jessica Robinson,
Director of Communications for their time and effort in making it available for this book.