Author Topic: FREE FUEL  (Read 7262 times)

Offline JohnEd

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FREE FUEL
« on: May 04, 2006, 09:37:27 PM »
Calling all chemists,

I read a post a while back that included the offer to "share what I have found out about BIODIESEL" in exchange for some advice.  I didn't email the BN as I didn't have the info he was seeking.  Was anything ever posted?

What is the story on bioD?  If I were to develope a source for waste oil from a beanery, how would I begin to process the stuff?

Also, a long while ago a trucker told me that waste crank case oil could be added to your tank for some free fuel.  He added that the power would drop off as the diesel had more power than lube oil.  He wasn't talking about using much.  A mechanic friend verified that "story" and added that you would go broke replacing your fuel filters.

I am sure that particulate removal and acid neutralization are critical.  What else?

Please don't land on me too hard as these aren't my lies or recomendations.  Inquiring minds, you know?

Still love ya

John Ed
"An uneducated vote is a treasonous act more damaging than any treachery of the battlefield.
The price of apathy towards public affairs is to be ruled by evil men." Plato
“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”
—Pla

NCbob

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #1 on: May 05, 2006, 04:58:51 AM »
Hi John Ed,

Don't know anything about the bean oil thing but I can relate to the waste lube oil inquiry.

Many years ago I was Engineer on a 90' Motor Yacht built by Stephens Yacht in Stockton, CA.  The builders had put in a waste oil tank where we could pump the lube oil out of the main engines and generators and mix it back in with the fuel oil.  As best I can recall Caterpillar would allow up to 10% waste lube oil to be mixed in with the fresh fuel.  It was a great way of disposing of the waste.  Since she had underwater exhausts we didn't see any changes in the exhaust or soot buildup in the hull.

Our abiliity to burn the waste oil prompted others to inquire of the engine manufacturers (Detroit Diesel 2 strokes were the big duck on the pond in those days) and DD nixed the idea completely.  Cummins was barely on the marine scene then having only a few 555's (triple nickels) in Sport Fishing types.

We didn't have any recallable filter problems (we used the double Racor Marine filters on the suction side of the fuel pumps) using the 10% mix-back.

I run an 8V71 in my MC5A and wouldn't consider a mixback for a second.  As long as Advanced and Auto Zone are willing to take my waste lube oil it's not worth taking a chance of being stuck somewhere along a busy Interstate and needing to change primary and secondary filters.

FWIW

NCbob

Offline Len Silva

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #2 on: May 05, 2006, 05:14:25 AM »
I don't think I would do it either but, how would you feel about it if you could pre filter the waste oil before mixing it?

Len Silva

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Offline Geoff

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #3 on: May 05, 2006, 07:16:01 AM »
Your fuel filters are not going to pick up all the microscopic dirt particles in used engine oil.  Detroit Diesel strongly advises against this practice, and it is not worth it for a few gallons of 'savings'.  I have taken apart Detroits where owners were using additives and they leave a lot of buildup on the pistons, rings and valves.  Biodiesel or used veggie oil is okay-- it isn't full of dirt/combustion by-products.
Geoff
'82 RTS AZ

Offline Viking

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #4 on: May 05, 2006, 07:21:13 AM »
Hey JohnEd

In the fuel crisis of 70's, I worked in maintenance for a large trucking company.  Blending waste oil with fuel up to 5% was approved by cummins. It was a good way to solve a pollution problem, and the 55qts per change gave us about 45 miles.  

Racor got into the game and offered for sale a 'filter buggy'. We bought one. You had a suction line, and two hoses that went to fuel tank. Suction line went into dipstick tube. You turned the unit on and it filtered oil before blending it with fuel. As i recall, it had two filters about the size of 900 fg's.

We used this system for many months........until............the fed came out and said that waste oil would be subject to fed fuel tax !!   So, that killed it.

Offline musicman

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #5 on: May 05, 2006, 07:38:48 AM »
Call me dumb if you want to but Im not pouring waste oil or McDonalds fryer grease in my baby I dont care if the president of Mobil and EXXon said it was safe..Kinda reminds me of taking bath water and running it thru a colinder and saying it safe to drink....lol

Offline DrivingMissLazy

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #6 on: May 05, 2006, 07:56:07 AM »
Call me dumb if you want to but Im not pouring waste oil or McDonalds fryer grease in my baby I dont care if the president of Mobil and EXXon said it was safe..Kinda reminds me of taking bath water and running it thru a colinder and saying it safe to drink....lol

Had a customer in last week that we had to pull the fuel tank on his Mercedes. The filter on the in tank fuel pump was clogged with waste from McDonald's grease. Cost him a couple of hundred bucks to learn that he had to do a better job of filtering.
Richard
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body. But rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, a good Reisling in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming:  WOO HOO, what a ride

El-Sonador

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #7 on: May 05, 2006, 08:36:07 AM »
I don't know much that is free but I wouldn't be putting fry grease through my system either...

I think the best choice for us [diesel] units, at least in the near term, may be in Bio-Diesel...
We can even make it ourselves...

One of the better sources for info on that is...

GOTO...
 ~ http://www.biodiesel.org/ The National Bio-Diesel Board (NBB)
 ~ http://www.wnbiodiesel.com/ Wille Nelson's Site
 ~ http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_make.html make your own Bio-Diesel
 ~ http://www.biodieselnow.com/ good additional links page

Steve

Offline boogiethecat

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #8 on: May 05, 2006, 09:02:40 AM »
So why not filter your waste oil with a frantz filter first, then mix it in.  Those things are slow but they take it down  to sub-micron cleanliness for the cost of a roll of toilet paper...
1962 Crown
San Diego, Ca

Offline pvcces

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Re: FREE FUEL
« Reply #9 on: May 05, 2006, 09:13:23 PM »
What Geoff has to say about people using additives in their fuel is something to be concerned about. However, I think some of the discussion about how bad the lube oil is for the engine borders on silliness.

The engine has lube oil getting to most of it's parts as a part of it's life; putting that oil on the other end of the piston in minute quantities by burning the waste oil shouldn't be harmful unless there is something that burning traces of lube oil will create that fuels won't.

I don't think that makes much sense when you consider that diesels burn bunker C and the refined oil is sometimes stored in caverns. It even picks up rock dust in storage. That's something that the operators of the railways in Great Britain learned after they installed centrifuges on the locomotives to filter lube oil and fuel.

The centrifuging of the fuel added about 50% longevity because of reduced liner wear; nothing else they did made nearly as mch difference, IIRC. I believe they ran a lot of two stroke engines in those locomotives.

I would be curious if there is any more good information available from people servicing the Detroits.

Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576
Suncatcher
Ketchikan, Alaska
Tom Caffrey PD4106-2576
Suncatcher
Ketchikan, Alaska

 

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