I have been reading here for a while, just never posted. I like the site and all the info available. I have a bio set up in my shop using an appleseed setup. I am on my 6th batch(100 liters each). I get my oil from the same 2 places each week, and titrations are usually very close to the previous weeks batch. With that being said, I have something I dont quite know what to do with, so I am consulting you pros! Here are the details:

-100 liters wvo heated and dewatered
-titrated even 5
-20 liters methanol
-1330g KOH(90%)
-heated oil to 140
-mixed slowly as usual(30-45minutes to get the methoxide in)
-processed 3 hours
-6liters water added(5% prewash) andmiixed 15 minutes.
-settled 72 hours(waited longer on this one. Not in a hurry for fuel)
-27/3 passed(always pass and I keep the test on the bench to keep looking at it. This one is still as clear as can be.)
-misted 4 hours and settled a overnight.
-misted 4 more hours and settled 3 hours.
-Did shakem up- SOAPY! I havent seen this look before.
-Bubbled for 4 hours and settled overnight.
-bubbled 2 hours and settled. Shakem up still the same.
-2 more bubblewashes, and same results. Washwtaer clear as tap water, but failing shakem up. Have bio heated to 93(hot as my heater will heat it).

Heres a pic of what I usually get with shakem up test


Here is what I have after 70ish gallons of washing

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Please help me with this before I ditch it. You know the frustration feeling I have at this point. lol. Thanks in advance for your help and suggestions.

Shane

I'm not a pro but looking at your photo, mine looks the same and I just do what I have found out from this forum. After washing I pump the cloudy bio back into my processor and heat to 55c and then pump through a filter and spray back onto the side of the processor drum through a piece of pipe I have crimped to form a spray pattern and let this run for a couple of hours until bio becomes clear. Hopes this helps Mark.

Thanks for your reply. My picture is the result of doing the shakem test on bio that is washed and clear. If I wouldnt have done the test, I would consider it good, but the test tells me different.

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Shane

The fast that the water is still milky looking would suggest it needs more washing.

Looking at the second pic, there is a thin layer of clear bio on top, with lots of mixed between and a thin whitish layer, probably soap between that and the water layer.

I usually bubble for 24 hours or so per cycle, then settle an hour or so. Mix is usually around 50:50 bio/water.

Thanks Quarla. That second pic is after 24 hour bubble cycle and about an hours wait before testing. Bubble water clear as tap water. Its like the soap is in the oil and wont come out. Almost as if the bubbles just move around the soap instead of taking them down with them. I dried overnight again, and now I am misting all over in hopes to "wash down", but not hopeful. It didnt work the last 3 mists, but will see. HOW to get soap out of bio- remove the water and soap will fall?? If water is removed, can soap stay in the bio as clear?? TIA.

Shane

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Shane

The photo looks like the "orange juice" colour you get after washing, which is perfectly normal. All you need to do now is dry it and it should clear.

Also if you do the shakemup test too vigorously it can create an emulsion, so all you need to do is invert the jam jar a few times, not shake the crap out of it.

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Sean

I don't know, but it looks like an emulsion already, to me. Must be a pretty rough shakeup! Give it time without any more water (and possibly some heat) and see if the emulsion breaks. Otherwise it seems you have done it all correctly.

Shane when you are bubbling are your air stones right at the bottom?

They should be well under the water. If they are abouve the water nothing will happen as it just mixes the bio around. That's the only reason i could think of for soap still being in there and having the water drain clear.

I bubble from the bottom of the water. Finally got the batch washed after two more 20 gallon mist washes. Wash water came clean, and i dried while I was at work. Shes clear and dark amber/red now. Also discovered my shakem up was too much shakem!! LOL!!! I was truly trying to shake the crap out of it. Didnt know any better. Just flip the jar end over end about 10-12 times and she split beautifully with clear water and no line in 6 minutes. Go figure! Thanks for all your replies and all the good info on this site.

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Shane

shane i would drain the water out of that jar full and gently heat the white crap up and you will probably get nice bio out of it take youre time then if that works try heating the rest