Development of a clean biodiesel fuel in Hong Kong using recycled oil

Abstract

All fuel usage produces air pollutants, causing local and trans-boundary air pollution and acid rain problems. Biodiesel is a clean renewable fuel with properties similar to diesel but produced from renewable resources such as vegetable oils and animal fats. Although this fuel has been developed some two to three decades ago, it is not commonly used, mainly due to the higher production cost involved. Due to the increasing concern on environmental protection, a lot of researches on the usage of this fuel are conducted in recent years. To study the characteristics of this fuel, a special biodiesel fuel is produced using waste cooking oil and animal fat from restaurants as feedstock. Reusing of these wastes has both the benefit of producing a cleaner fuel and waste cycling. Tests of the fuel with different proportions of diesel have been conducted on various diesel engines and the results obtained are encouraging. The environmental benefits and suitability of this fuel to Hong Kong to reduce air pollution problems are discussed based on the assessment results.