This electronic brochure highlights our capabilities and activities in the area of Biodiesel Fuel Technolog. Please sign our guestbook. For additional information, e-mail Steven R. Westbrook, Southwest Research Institute.

Biodiesel Fuel Technology

With more than 55 years of research, development, and evaluation in fuels and lubricants, Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) has extensive experience in preparing and analyzing conventional and alternative fuels. The Institute's blend of field experience, engineering and chemical skills, and design and fabrication capabilities offers an interdisciplinary approach to fuel-related services.

Biodiesel as an alternative fuel

Biodiesel is a clean-burning alternative fuel that offers several advantages over conventional diesel fuel, including:

Decreased smog-forming potential
Reduced sulfur emissions
Biodegradable and nontoxic characteristics
Reduced dependence on foreign oil

The Petroleum Products Research Department, with more than 45,000 square feet of laboratory and office space, provides chemical and physical analyses, as well as most standard ASTM international, federal, and industrial evaluations.

SwRI fuel analyses and evaluations

In addition to evaluating conventional and other alternative fuels, SwRI has extensive capabilities for analyzing biodiesel and biodiesel blends, including:

Conformance evaluations
Emission standards
Nonstandard analyses
Customized evaluations

The Institute has complete and up-to-date facilities and equipment to perform analytical requirements for biodiesel fuels according to ASTM D 6751, including:

Flash point (closed cup)
Water and sediment
Kinematic viscosity, 40 °C
Sulfated ash
Sulfur
Copper strip corrosion
Cetane number
Cloud point
Carbon residue
Acid number
Free glycerin
Total glycerin
Phosphorus content
Distillation temperature


SwRI uses a variety of state-of-the-art equipment to evaluate the quality of biodiesel fuel.	The Rancimat apparatus shown above is used to measure the oxidation stability of biodiesel fuels.

SwRI Alternative Fuels Center

The Institute is recognized for its preparation of custom blends. Using client-provided or specified fuels, experienced SwRI scientists create custom blends and evaluate them in accordance to a variety of standards. The SwRI Alternative Fuels Center provides specially formulated fuels in quantities ranging from 5 to 5,000 gallons. The modern facility includes a laboratory, drum storage area, and a 5,000-gallon-capacity tank farm.

The blending of fuels is supported by sophisticated compositional analyses for physical properties. This comprehensive activity has functioned continuously since 1979 for programs sponsored by industry, trade associations, and government agencies, including the U.S. Departments of Energy and Defense, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Using a microseparometer, experienced SwRI technicians determine the water separation characteristics of biodiesel fuels.

This brochure was published in June 2005. For more information about applied statistics for engineering, contact Steven R. Westbrook, Fuels and Lubricants Technology Department, Fuels and Lubricants Research Division, Southwest Research Institute, P.O. Drawer 28510, San Antonio, Texas 78228-0510, Phone (210) 522-3185, Fax (210) 522-4581.

Fuels and Lubricants Research Brochures
SwRI Brochures SwRI Publications SwRI Home