Converting Canola Seed to Cooking Oil, Fuel

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.Researchers at Penn State are conducting an experiment to see if pressing canola seed can convert it into cooking oil and bio-diesel fuel. As reported by the Daily Collegian, the ultimate goal of the project is to create and produce a form of canola oil that can be used in on-campus dining hall fryers.

According to Jack Matson, emeritus professor of environmental engineering at Penn State, the project hopes to produce biodiesel through plant oils such as soybean, canola, rapeseed and camelina; animal oils such as tallow and lard; and used cooking oil from local sources. He noted a new Pennsylvania law requires all retail diesel fuel sold to contain 2 percent biodiesel, which will increase to 20 percent over time.

Our goal is to help understand and develop the agronomics of growing oilseeds such as canola and camelina in central Pennsylvania and how these crops can fit into typical corn and alfalfa rotations. Local farmers could grow a fraction their diesel energy needs with the oilseed converted to biodiesel in a green biodiesel" process invented at Penn State and blended with diesel for farm use. Another feedstock, used vegetable oil from restaurants, also will be converted to biodiesel for farm use," he said.