Profitable, clean, carbon-neutral energy sources have been difficult to develop. UTC Engineering professor Dr. Frank Jones and his research team are seeking funds to build a micro-reactor to make biodiesel.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe real-world application of this transformational technology would be a biodiesel production plant the size of a typical desktop computer tower capable of producing 500-1000 liters of biodiesel per week. These devices would be distributed and operated by small businesses,\u201d said Jones, UC Foundation Professor, Chemical Engineering.<\/p>\n
Manufacturing biodiesel involves mixing vegetable oil or animal fat with alcohol in the presence of a catalyst. Traditional processes are slow and produce unwanted by-products such as soap.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe micro process does not produce soap, removes the need to separate the catalyst from the product, produces two valuable co-products that are inexpensively and easily separated, and decreases processing time from hours to seconds,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Profitable, clean, carbon-neutral energy sources have been difficult to develop. UTC Engineering professor Dr. Frank Jones and his research team are seeking funds to build a micro-reactor to make biodiesel. \u201cThe real-world application of this transformational technology would be a biodiesel production plant the size of a typical desktop computer tower capable of producing 500-1000… <\/p>\n