Straight Vegetable Oil As A Diesel Fuel?: Vehicle Technologies Office

VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES OFFICE
Straight Vegetable Oil as a Diesel Fuel?

Biodiesel, a renewable fuel produced from animal fats or vegetable
oils, is popular among many vehicle owners and fleet managers seeking to reduce emissions and support U.S. energy security. Questions
sometimes arise about the viability of fueling vehicles with straight
vegetable oil (SVO), or waste oils from cooking and other processes,
without intermediate processing. But SVO and waste oils differ from
biodiesel (and conventional diesel) in some important ways and are
generally not considered acceptable vehicle fuels for large-scale or
long-term use.
Performance of SVO
Research has shown that there are several technical barriers to widespread
use of SVO as a vehicle fuel.
Coking Index Relative to Diesel
The published engineering literature

strongly indicates that the use of SVO
leads to reduced engine life,1 caused by
the buildup of carbon deposits inside
the engine and the buildup of SVO in
the engine lubricant. These issues are
attributable to SVOs high viscosity
and high boiling point relative to the
required boiling range for diesel fuel.
The carbon buildup doesnt necessarily happen immediately upon use
of SVO; it typically takes place over
the long term. These conclusions are
1.8
1.6
1.4
1.2
1.0
0.8
0%
3%
5%
consistent across a substantial body of

technical literature, including an SAE
technical paper that reviewed the published data on the use of SVO in diesel
engines.2 The SAE paper states:
Compared to No. 2 diesel fuel, all of
the vegetable oils are much more
viscous, are much more reactive to
oxygen, and have higher cloud point
and pour point temperatures.
Diesel engines with vegetable oils offer
acceptable engine performance and
emissions for short-term operation.
Long-term operation results in operational and durability problems.
Some investigators have explored

modifying vehicles to preheat SVO
prior to injection into the engine. Others have examined blends of vegetable
oil with conventional diesel. These
techniques may mitigate the problems
to some degree but dont eliminate
them entirely. Studies show that carbon buildup (coking) continues over
time, resulting in higher engine maintenance costs and/or shorter engine
life. Figure 1 shows that the tendency
to form carbon deposits increases with
10% 15% 20%
Percent Oil in Fuel

Figure 1. Buildup of carbon deposits
in the engine as a function of the
proportion of oil in the fuel.
cleancities.energy.gov
January 2014
Straight vegetable oil is not the same

as biodiesel and is generally not
recommended for long-term vehicle use.
Photo from iStock 8561648
increasing proportions of vegetable oil

blended into the fuel.3
Viscosity (the measure of a fuels
resistance to flow) is another important consideration related to the use
of SVO. The viscosity of SVO is much
higher than that of diesel fuel at normal operating temperatures.1 Figure
2 (on p. 2) illustrates the viscosities of
diesel fuel and of 100% sunflower oil
over a range of temperatures. High
fuel viscosity can cause premature
wear of the fuel pumps and injectors.
It can also dramatically alter the structure of the fuel spray coming out of
the injectors: increasing droplet size,
decreasing spray angle, and increasing
1
Sidib, S.S.; Blin, J.; Vaitilingom, G.; Azoumah, Y.

Use of Crude Filtered Vegetable Oil as a Fuel in
Diesel Engines State of the Art: Literature Review.
Renew Sust Energ Rev 14(9):2748-2759 (2010).
abu, A.K.; Devaradjane, G. Vegetable Oils

B
and Their Derivatives as Fuels for CI Engines:
An Overview. SAE Technical Paper No.
2003-01-0767.
igure 1 adapted from Jones, Samuel T.; Peterson,

F
Charles L.; Thompson, Joseph C. Biological and
Agricultural Engineering Department, University
of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho. Used Vegetable Oil Fuel
Blend Comparisons Using Injector Coking in a DI
Diesel Engine. Presented at 2001 ASAE Annual
International Meeting, Sacramento, Calif., July 30
August 1, 2001. SAE Paper No. 01-6051.
VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES OFFICE January 2014 Page 2
100
than SVO and results in better engine

performance. In particular, biodiesel
has a lower boiling point and viscosity
than SVO.
Viscosity (mm2/second)
90
80
70
60
Biodiesel is most commonly used as a

blend with petroleum diesel fuel. All
manufacturers of diesel vehicles and
engines have approved the use of B5
(a blend containing 5% biodiesel and
95% petroleum diesel), and some
approve the use of blends up to B20
(20% biodiesel and 80% petroleum
diesel) or higher.
100% Sunflower Oil
50
40
30
20
Diesel
10
0
18
28
38
48
58
68
78
88
Temperature in C
Figure 2. Viscosities of sunflower oil and conventional diesel fuel as a
function of temperature.
spray penetration. These effects tend to

increase wetting of the engines internal
surfaces, thereby diluting the engine
lubricant and increasing the tendency
for coking.
Where can I get more

information?
The
U.S. Department of Energys

Alternative Fuels Data Center, at
afdc.energy.gov, contains a vast
collection of information on alternative fuels and alternative fuel
vehicles.
The
National Biodiesel Board

is the national trade association
representing the biodiesel industry. Its website, biodiesel.org,
serves as a clearinghouse of
biodiesel-related information.
The long-term effect of using SVO in

diesel engines equipped with modern
emission control systems is also a matter of concern. Buildup of fuel in the
lubricant is more significant in these
engineseven for petroleum diesel
and would likely be severe with SVO.
In general, these systems were not
originally designed to accommodate
the properties of SVO, and they can be
seriously damaged or poisoned by outof-spec or contaminated fuel.
Biodiesel: Fuel Made

From SVO
Biodiesel is an alternative fuel that can
be made from SVO or other fats in a
chemical process called transesterification, which involves a reaction with
methanol, using caustic soda (sodium
hydroxide) as a catalyst. Biodiesel
has substantially different properties
Clean Cities Technical Response Service

800-254-6735 technicalresponse@icfi.com
DOE/GO-102014-3449 January 2014
Prepared by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory
(NREL), a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of
Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy;
NREL is operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.
Printed with a renewable-source ink on paper containing at
least 50% wastepaper, including 10% post consumer waste.
To ensure good performance in

engines, biodiesel must meet quality
specifications developed by ASTM
International. ASTM Specification
D6751 is for pure biodiesel (B100),
used for blending with petroleum
diesel fuel. Biodiesel that meets
ASTM D6751 is legally registered
with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Blends up to B5 may
be found in conventional diesel fuel
without additional labeling at the
pump. Properties of these low-level
blends are covered by the diesel fuel
ASTM Specification D975. For blends
of biodiesel ranging from B6 to B20,
a separate specification exists, ASTM
D7467, and pump labeling is required
to inform the consumer that a biodiesel blend is being sold.
For a complete list of ASTM biodiesel
requirements, see the Biodiesel Handling and Use Guidelines at www.nrel.
gov/vehiclesandfuels/pdfs/43672.pdf. In
addition, the biodiesel industry has
instituted a quality assurance program
for biodiesel producers and marketers. To learn more about the BQ-9000
program, visit bq-9000.org.

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VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES OFFICE

Straight Vegetable Oil as a Diesel Fuel?

Coking Index Relative to Diesel

The published engineering literature

consistent across a substantial body of

Some investigators have explored

10% 15% 20%

Percent Oil in Fuel

Straight vegetable oil is not the same

increasing proportions of vegetable oil

Sidib, S.S.; Blin, J.; Vaitilingom, G.; Azoumah, Y.

 abu, A.K.; Devaradjane, G. Vegetable Oils

 igure 1 adapted from Jones, Samuel T.; Peterson,

VEHICLE TECHNOLOGIES OFFICE January 2014 Page 2

than SVO and results in better engine

Biodiesel is most commonly used as a

100% Sunflower Oil

spray penetration. These effects tend to

Where can I get more

U.S. Department of Energys

National Biodiesel Board

The long-term effect of using SVO in

Biodiesel: Fuel Made

Clean Cities Technical Response Service

To ensure good performance in

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Sidib, S.S.; Blin, J.; Vaitilingom, G.; Azoumah, Y.

abu, A.K.; Devaradjane, G. Vegetable Oils

igure 1 adapted from Jones, Samuel T.; Peterson,