Burning waste cooking oil

[Michael Fisher]

We hope to find a way to efficiently grind or crush the lipids out of the cell, at which point washing, settling, and filtering could be sufficient to separate the oil.?

A big Cuisinart, perhaps?

A Cuisinart food processor blade is 2mm thick.? We need something small enough to destroy 0.3-0.5mm organisms.

[Michael Fisher]

Hmmm... I doubt anyone has considered biological lipid extraction.  There is probably a harmless bacteria that can release lipids from cells.

The human liver releases lipids.  But how?

[Michael Fisher]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lysosomes

Lysosomes contain digestive enzymes (acid hydrolases) to digest macromolecules. They are found in both plant and animal cells.

Some important enzymes in lysosomes are:
-Lipase, which digests lipids,
-Carbohydrases, which digest carbohydrates (e.g., sugars),
-Proteases, which digest proteins,
-Nucleases, which digest nucleic acids.

Also see:? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaucher_disease


I think it may be possible to introduce specific enzymes that would cause algal cells to digest themselves, destroying everything but the lipids.?

In the meantime, a sharper blade will have to do.

[BaRbArIaN]

How about ultrasonic waves in the liquid?   With an average particle size of 0.4mm and a known velocity of sound waves in water of about 1482 m/s, you need a vibrational element capable of about 3.7 MegaHertz to have the same wavelength as the cells (large piezoelectric crystals?).   This would resonate and break them up as they absorb energy from the waves.  I'm not saying its as easy as buying something from a hardware store of course, just that its something that maybe could work.

As an example, a little Googling finds an "immersion ultrasound transducer" available in this catalog:
http://www.panametrics-ndt.com/ndt/ndt_transducers/downloads/transducer_catalog.pdf
with the appropriate frequency range, as well as the company claiming they can tailor to suit specific ones.  Small units of course, but the technology is there.  Something to think about for this kind of stuff anyway.

[president]

What size fish bowl are you trying to grow in....1 gallon?

Are you using incandesent lights?

I have read that it takes about 7 pounds of dry algae to produce on gallon of oil.

[Michael Fisher]

How about ultrasonic waves in the liquid?? ?With an average particle size of 0.4mm and a known velocity of sound waves in water of about 1482 m/s, you need a vibrational element capable of about 3.7 MegaHertz to have the same wavelength as the cells (large piezoelectric crystals?).? ?This would resonate and break them up as they absorb energy from the waves.? I'm not saying its as easy as buying something from a hardware store of course, just that its something that maybe could work.

As an example, a little Googling finds an "immersion ultrasound transducer" available in this catalog:
http://www.panametrics-ndt.com/ndt/ndt_transducers/downloads/transducer_catalog.pdf
with the appropriate frequency range, as well as the company claiming they can tailor to suit specific ones.? Small units of course, but the technology is there.? Something to think about for this kind of stuff anyway.

That's a great idea!

[mvpel]

Folks here may be interested in this website: http://www.utterpower.com/

In particular, the pages about the large, dead-simple Lister diesel engines.

[KBCraig]

Folks here may be interested in this website: http://www.utterpower.com/

In particular, the pages about the large, dead-simple Lister diesel engines.

I thought I'd already mentioned that site, but I couldn't find any previous mention via searching. Hmmm... must've been some other forum.

But yeah, the listeroids are great, and bulletproof. They'll run on anything from WVO to JP5.

I believe if I were installing a Lister system, I'd generate 24v into a bank of truck batteries and use a sine wave inverter to produce household current. The mechanical governor is just not quite up to the job of holding a steady 60Hz output with varying loads. Plus, by using a bank of batteries as a buffer, the engine doesn't have to run all the time.

Edit to add:
Plus, with a DC system, it's much easier to add PV, hydro, and wind to the mix. You wouldn't be totally reliant on any one electrical source.

Kevin

[Lloyd Danforth]

I am impressed with the Listeroid.  It is simular to the one cyl gas farm engines that I am familiar with.  I bought the CD, but, either I don't know how to bring everything up, or, I didn't get much for my 20 bucks. It runs 2.26 minutes.

[KBCraig]

I am impressed with the Listeroid.  It is simular to the one cyl gas farm engines that I am familiar with.  I bought the CD, but, either I don't know how to bring everything up, or, I didn't get much for my 20 bucks. It runs 2.26 minutes.

Huh. I thought it was supposed to have all the website content in HTML form.

[Lloyd Danforth]

I just put it in my computer so I could tell you what I saw. When I ran it before I went to the cd-dvd area and hit run. and saw somw video of the engine running and some asians.  When I just put it in and waited for a dialogue box to come up, it asked how I wanted to handle the pictures.  526 of them, it turns out, duh!

I can send this to you if you want to check it out and  send it back. My email:
lrdan4th@aol.com

[Pat McCotter]

Governor Lynch wants us to know how to save energy.

StayWarmNH at the Office of Energy and Planning.

Why are we trying to make and burn oil!? The OEP probably has some great suggestions for us!

The state of NH has an energy plan!

[KBCraig]

Mike, the January '06 "Motor Trend" has a brief article on spirulina oil production and some of the technology being used. I can't find it on their website, but you might look for a copy at the library or news stand. Or read it in the doctor's office, like I did. 

[Pat McCotter]

I found the perfect diesel vehicle!

[Kat Kanning]

I don't know...how is it in the snow?