Skip to main content
ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #210051
Title: Evaluation of Partially Hydrogenated Methyl Esters of Soybean Oil

Author
item Moser, Bryan
item Haas, Michael
item Moser, Jill
item Jackson, Michael - Mike
item Erhan, Sevim
item List, Gary

Submitted to: American Chemical Society Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 4/29/2007
Publication Date: 8/19/2007
Citation: Moser, B.R., Haas, M.J., Moser, J.K., Jackson, M.A., Erhan, S.Z., List, G.R. 2007. Evaluation of partially hydrogenated methyl esters of soybean oil [abstract]. American Chemical Society. p. 33.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Specifications mandating biodiesel quality, most notably in the EU (EN 14214) and the USA (ASTM D 6751), have emerged that influence feedstock choice in the production of biodiesel fuel. For instance, EN 14214 contains a specification for iodine value (IV, 120) that eliminates soybean oil (SBO) as a potential feedstock, as it generally has an IV >120. Therefore, partially hydrogenated SBO methyl esters (PHSME, IV = 116) was evaluated as a potential biodiesel fuel by measuring a number of important fuel parameters, such as oxidation stability, low temperature performance, lubricity, kinematic viscosity, and specific gravity. Compared to soybean oil methyl esters (SME), PHSME exhibited superior oxidative stability and similar specific gravity, but inferior low temperature performance, kinematic viscosity, and lubricity. However, the kinematic viscosity and lubricity of PHSME were still within prescribed US and EU limits. There is no set value for low temperature performance in biodiesel specifications, but PHSME has superior cold flow behavior when compared to other alternative feedstock fuels, such as palm oil, tallow and grease methyl esters. The production of PHSME from refined SBO would increase biodiesel production costs by US$0.04/L (US$0.15/gal) in comparison to SME. In summary, PHSME is within both the EU and American standards for all properties measured in this study and deserves consideration as a potential biodiesel fuel.