Raw materials and catalysts for biodiesel production

Biodiesel is the most well-known biofuel in Europe and accounts for up to 7% of the content of diesel fuel blends.

Biodiesel is produced from oil-rich crops such as rapeseed – the seeds are ground and pressed to extract the oil, which accounts for around 40% of the seed mass. The oilseed cakes are then used in the animal feed sector because of their high protein content.

Natural plant oils are not suitable for use in standard diesel motors due to their molecular structure, which is why the oil is converted using a chemical process when producing biodiesel. This “transesterification” process is done by adding methanol and a catalyst such as potassium methylate (KM32) or potassium hydroxide. We reliably supply both methanol as a reagent and the catalyst to appropriate production facilities.

The production of conventional diesel consumes large quantities of fossil energy. It is different with alternative resources: according to the default values of the EU Renewable Energy Directive (RED II), biodiesel from rapeseed oil reduces greenhouse gas emissions over its life cycle by 47 percent. For biodiesel from used cooking oil, the reduction is 84 percent compared with fossil diesel, and for biodiesel from animal fats, 78 percent.