Cold weather performance of Vegetable Oil Blended Diesel Fuel

I have been running various alternative diesel fuel blends of WVO and unleaded gasoline (RUG/Petrol) since Feb, 2007 on a 1983 Chevy 6.2L diesel with a Stanadyne Rotary DB2 IP. I have started the engine with no difficulty on an 80/20 (WVO/gas) blend down to 3F (-16c).

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• biodiesel
• biofuels
• VOBDF

[Project23D]

When first blending wvo with gasoline, was precautions need to be taken when adding to a 1/4 or diesel still left in the car?

What are the negatives about using WVO blending with gasoline? Increased engine wear, decreased oil life? ect, ect

besides the obvious cost savings, what are the positives?

[Jhananda]

@Project23D The most important precaution to take when blending waste oils with any solvent is to make sure you do that blending outside of the fuel tank, let the blend settle for at least 24 hours for WVO and 3 days for WMO, then either drain off the sludge off the bottom, or pour or pump off the good fuel off the top, then filter the blend down to 1-5 microns, that is it.

It does not matter what is in the fuel tank when blending anything, but WMO blends.

[Jhananda]

@Project23D I have noticed no increased wear on my engine running waste oil blends in it, nor decreased engine lube life.

The other positives in running WVO blends are: I prefer the smell of WVO blend exhaust over diesel fuel exhaust. And, I very much like the smell of turpentine-WVO blend exhaust.

Another positive of gasoline-based blends is they remain liquid at low temperatures, so the engine starts right up without a block heater at 0F (-18c)

[Jhananda]

@MrTdjames I have successfully blended WMO with WVO at 50%, then gasoline at 20%, then acetone at 5%, then let it settle for 3 days, then drain off the sludge, then filter down to 1-micron works for me.

Or, purge the fuel system with diesel fuel prior to switching between WMO and WVO, or back.

[MrTdjames]

@Jhananda Just wanting to know how wvo blended with wmo is coming. I've been running wmo blended with diesel with success and now I have obtained 300 gallons of wvo I was thinking of mixing wvo with kerosene but seeing your video has got me concerned about residue left in tank could mix and cause problems. Is there any way to use wvo in this truck without removing or flushing tank or better off selling wvo. Thanks for the help and informative videos.

[Jhananda]

@steelraptor Well, it is possible that your injectors are coked up. I found I could pull the injectors and soak them in MEK over night, then scrape off the remaining carbon with a razor blade and a dental pick. You could try the same thing. i also found I good pull a good set from a dead 6.2/6.5 from the junkyard for about $88/set. So, I now have a spare set. You could also just run it on diesel for a while to see how it performs. If its performance improves, then it is your blend.

[steelraptor]

@Jhananda I reduced the kero to about 30% and it seems to be running much better now and after a few hefty doses of power service cleaner the injector knocking stopped. Only thing now is that I am hard starting in 80 degree weather, so must have killed the last of my glow plugs. Thanks for the advice though. =P

[Jhananda]

@steelraptor Yes, I have a Chevy G-20 with a 6.2L diesel engine. Yes, I went through a bunch of injectors, which were all gooped up from 1) not blending before settling. Now I settle for 24-48 hours before filtering. I also drain off the sludge before filtering. Also, another cause of my injector problems was blending WMO with WVO. This turns out to be a serious problem, but I am working on a solution.

Maybe you have a little too much kerosene in your blend. Try reducing it to 30%

[steelraptor]

@Jhananda That's great to hear that I'm close ^-^. I'm running a 6.5 GM diesel in my truck now, I believe your van is a either a 6.2 or 6.5 as well. I take it on the highway daily. But what's odd is that once the motor is hot but not warm the injector knock goes away. Running the AC on a nice day seems to blow enough heat over the injector to loosen it up. You mentioned earlier you went thru a bunch of injectors before you perfected the blending. Did you rebuild them yourself?

[Jhananda]

@steelraptor kerosene makes a fine blending agent with vegetable oil or any waste oil. And, blending veg at 60-70% and kerosene at 30-40% seems very reasonable. You could add gasoline at 5%, if you wanted, especially in the winter, but I see no reason to add diesel fuel. My guess is your injector problem probably has nothing to do with your blending, but maybe your driving habits. Diesel engines are really designed for long haul applications. So, take your diesel out on the highway weekly