"HSE advises against home production - Because of these serious health and safety risks, HSE advises against the home manufacture of biodiesel using domestic or other unsuitable facilities and by people who are not trained in handling dangerous substances."
Ho-hum (yawn...). Whereas: Safety http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_make.html#safe More about methanol http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_make.html#moremeth Hazards http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_processor.html#haz As for quality, actually it's the other way round: Quality http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_vehicle.html#qual1 ------- http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/biodiesel.htm HSE - PUBLICATIONS Domestic production of biodiesel - health and safety warning Biodiesel is a relatively new synthetic fuel made from vegetable oils, and its domestic production raises serious health and safety concerns. The information below describes some of the hazards and contains advice from HSE that biodiesel should not be produced at home. Biodiesel is produced commercially and can be bought from some petrol stations. However there are 'recipes' available on the internet for the domestic production of biodiesel. These usually involve mixing methanol with sodium hydroxide (also known as caustic soda or lye), and pouring the resulting mixture into vegetable oil. Such home production raises serious health and safety concerns, as it involves hazardous chemicals and the risk of fire and explosion. Making biodiesel is a potentially hazardous process that should only be carried out in controlled conditions by people with the proper training and experience. At the very least a poorly made product could seriously damage a vehicle engine. Hazardous chemicals The individual chemicals needed for the process are hazardous. Sodium hydroxide is extremely corrosive. It can cause burning to unprotected skin and is particularly damaging to the eyes. Stirring the liquid can often produce a fine mist of liquid droplets. If this mist is inhaled, severe irritation of the respiratory tract and breathlessness can occur. Accidental swallowing can cause major damage to the throat lining and digestive system. Methanol is a toxic chemical. It can enter the body through breathing in the vapour, direct skin contact or by accidental swallowing. It can cause nausea, dizziness and visual disturbances that can result in blindness. Swallowing small quantities could pose a significant health threat to the central nervous system and could also affect other vital organs. It is a cumulative poison and repeated exposure to relatively low concentrations could cause harm in the longer term. Risk of fire and explosion There is a serious risk of fire and explosion because methanol is highly flammable and there are many potential sources of ignition in most homes such as: * normal electrical equipment, for example kitchen appliances, plugs and switches; * open flames, for example gas burners; and * smoking materials. It is also possible that a violent chemical reaction could occur by * making a mistake with the recipe, for example getting the quantities wrong or adding the chemicals in the wrong order; * poor mixing; or * making too much at once. Any of these could result in the mixture splashing or boiling over, causing serious burns. HSE advises against home production Because of these serious health and safety risks, HSE advises against the home manufacture of biodiesel using domestic or other unsuitable facilities and by people who are not trained in handling dangerous substances. Further information * Free leaflet - Safe working with flammable substances (INDG227) PDF [65kb] Basic safety principles when working with flammable liquids (ISBN 0 71761154 X) * Free leaflet - How safe is your workplace? A short guide to the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations (INDG370) PDF [400kb] ISBN 0 7176 2589 3 * Available from HSE Books - The safe use and handling of flammable liquids (HSG140) More detailed guidance on flammable liquids (ISBN 0 7176 0967 7) * Designing and operating safe chemical reaction processes (HSG143) Guidance on chemical reactions (ISBN 0 7176 1051 9, price £12.50) HSE publications are obtainable from HSE Books, telephone 01787 881 165. Further information on general health and safety issues is available from the HSE Infoline telephone 0845 345 0055 . Although HSE's prime concern is with health and safety, we are also obliged to point out that duty must be paid on all vehicle fuel for use by the general public, whatever the origins of the fuel. * Updated 27.09.05 _______________________________________________ Biofuel mailing list Biofuel@sustainablelists.org http://sustainablelists.org/mailman/listinfo/biofuel_sustainablelists.org Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Search the combined Biofuel and Biofuels-biz list archives (50,000 messages): http://www.mail-archive.com/biofuel@sustainablelists.org/
