Effect of Trace Contaminants on Cold Soak Filterability of Canola Biodiesel

Abstract

ASTM D 7501-09b, a cold soak filtration test (CSFT) was included in B100 specifications of ASTM D 6751-09, and brought new challenges to biodiesel producers and researchers investigating B100 quality. For a plant breeding program evaluating canola biodiesel quality traits, rapid assessment of biodiesel quality is important. Unfortunately, a limited amount of canola seed is available and obtaining the required volume of biodiesel (300 mL) for evaluating cold soak filterability is challenging. In order to develop a high throughput screening method of canola breeding lines for B100, assessing the cold soak filterability with reduced volumes of biodiesel is necessary. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of saturated monoglycerides, glycerin, and soap on cold soak filterability. The influence of saturated monoglycerides (0.04% to 0.46% w/w) on biodiesel precipitate formation was also evaluated. A regression model was generated to predict the filterability of biodiesel against the concentrations of trace contaminants. These experiments explored the possibility of using small scale biodiesel batches for scaling down the CSFT for canola breeding program for biodiesel production.