A Computer-Controlled Biodiesel Experiment

In this poster we describe a new computer-controlled, base-catalyzed transesterification experiment to produce biodiesel from vegetable oil that we have implemented in our unit operations laboratory. The main educational goal of the experiment is to measure the reaction kinetics at several temperatures and evaluate the activation energy of the reaction. Using a computer control panel to operate the process that is contained in a hood gives it the feel of a larger scale industrial process and minimizes some of the dangers from the hazardous and flammable materials involved. The new experiment provides experience with an industrially relevant, “green” technology and affords us a chance to reinforce safety concepts and provide experience with standard operating procedures and electronic batch records.