Frequently asked questions
Discover more about how we use cooking oil to create environmentally-friendly Biodiesel in our FAQs below. If you have any questions that we haven’t answered below, please get in touch with our team, who’ll be happy to help.
Contents
What is Waste Cooking Oil Used for?
What Kind of Oil Can We Collect?
Can You Get Paid for Waste Oil?
What is the Value of Waste Oil?
How is Waste Vegetable Oil Collected?
Who Collects Cooking Oil Near Me?
Can Waste Cooking Oil Be Recycled?
How Do You Recycle Cooking Oil?
What is the Chemistry of Bio Diesel?
What are the Advantages of Biodiesel?
Is Biodiesel Better For the Environment?
Can a Regular Diesel Engine Run On Biodiesel?
Do I Have to Modify my Engine to Run Biodiesel?
Is Biodiesel More Expensive Than Petroleum Diesel?
What is Waste Cooking Oil?
Oil starts to degrade once you start cooking with it, and at a certain point (which varies depending on what you’ve used it for), it is no longer suitable for use. Waste cooking oil is simply oil that can no longer be used, and therefore needs to be disposed of. The most common type of waste oil in the catering industry is fryer oil which is contaminated with food particles, such as small bits of batter or rendered fat. Waste cooking oil should be disposed of properly, and recycled where possible.
Can Used Oil Be Recycled?
Yes, oil can be recycled at your local recycling plant, as long as they are licensed to deal with oils, grease, and fats. Vegetable-based oils (sunflower, olive, sesame oil, etc) can be recycled into biofuels, specifically biodiesel, which is then used across a number of industries. Renewable fuel is used to power cars, machinery, equipment and more.
Bio UK Fuels works with qualified recycling partners nationwide to collect and transform used cooking oil into biofuels, reducing waste and our impact on the planet.
What Oil Can Be Recycled?
Most cooking oils and fats can be recycled into biofuels. This includes:
- Sunflower oil
- Olive oil
- Canola oil
- Peanut & sesame oil
- General vegetable oils
- Margarine, butter, and shortenings
- Grease & fats
Is Used Cooking Oil a Waste?
Yes, used cooking oil is a form of waste, and as such, it should be disposed of responsibly by qualified waste carriers like Bio UK Fuels. However, providing the cooking oil hasn’t been mixed with water, and that it is relatively free of food particles, cooking oil can be recycled into biofuels, which can serve as a sustainable alternative to diesel.
What is Waste Cooking Oil Used for?
Waste cooking oil is transformed into biodiesel, which is used across several industries as a sustainable fuel source that offers 80% less greenhouse gas emissions than mineral diesel.
The biodiesel produced by Bio UK Fuels is used to power electricity generators, car and van engines, and machinery and equipment. Essentially, biofuels can replace mineral fuels across a majority of their common uses.
What Kind of Oil Can We Collect?
Our team can collect and recycle all types of cooking oil, including used olive, vegetable, canola, peanut, sesame, sunflower, and other vegetable oils used within the food and catering industry. To ensure your oil can be recycled, it should be free from any food remains or water.
Can You Get Paid for Waste Oil?
Yes, you can. If you are recycling more than 100 litres of cooking oil or hard fats, you can get paid for your waste oil. The amount you get for each litre of waste will depend on who is collecting and recycling your oil, the type and quality of your oil, which area of the country you are in, and the current value of biodiesel.
What is the Value of Waste Oil?
We will pay you for the oil you recycle. The value of waste oil varies in relation to the price of biofuel, so you will receive an accurate estimate of how much you can get paid whenever you schedule a collection.
How is Waste Vegetable Oil Collected?
Your waste oil will be collected by our team in an equipped vehicle. We are responsible, licensed waste carriers and as such, we provide duty of care waste notes on each collection. For safe and easy transportation, simply store your waste oil in the containers that it arrived in, as these are usually big enough and offer a proper seal.
Alternatively, we can supply you with leak-proof containers (blue barrels) in which you can store your oil ready for collection. Fats and grease, where possible, should be solid and cold for collection.
Who Collects Cooking Oil Near Me?
Bio UK Fuels offers a nationwide cooking oil collection service. We cover the areas York, Harrogate, Leeds, Bradford, Hull, Grimsby, Scunthorpe, Doncaster, Sheffield, Manchester, Blackburn, Preston, Blackpool, Warrington, Liverpool, Stoke, Derby, Nottingham, Leicester, Cambridge, and Peterborough, among many others.
Our service also extends nationwide. Simply get in touch with us to find out if we cover your area. If you are located near Sheffield, your unwanted fats and oils will be recycled at our own plant.
Can Waste Cooking Oil Be Recycled?
Yes, many types of oil can be recycled. Oils that can be recycled include motor oils, cooking oils, hydraulic fluids, and gear lubricants. Recycled oil has several uses, including biodiesel, soapmaking, compost, and animal feed.
Here at Bio UK Fuels, we focus on recycling cooking oils, primarily those that are vegetable based such as sunflower oil, canola oil, and olive oil.
How Do You Recycle Cooking Oil?
Waste oil goes through several processes, including dewatering, and several rounds of filtration that remove big particles and impurities before it can be distilled and transformed into biofuel through the process of transesterification.
How To Get Rid of Waste Oil?
Caterers, pubs, schools, hotels, restaurants, and other commercial services can employ a qualified, free waste oil collection service like Bio UK Fuels to dispose of and recycle used cooking oil.
If you produce waste oil domestically, take it to your nearest recycling centre for responsible disposal. If your oil is simply thrown out, you risk damaging your local environment and infrastructure.
Where Does Waste Oil Go?
When waste oil is collected by us, the oil is taken to our nearest recycling plant, which is likely to be our depot in Sheffield, South Yorkshire. We are at the end of the recycling loop for vegetable oil waste, so we repurpose your used oil into biodiesel, which is used across the county as a sustainable fuel substitute.
What is Biodiesel?
Biodiesel is the name of a green, clean-burning alternative diesel, produced from renewable resources. Pure biodiesel (also called B100) contains no petroleum, but it can be blended at any level with petroleum diesel to create a biodiesel blend.
It can be used in compression-ignition (diesel) engines with little or no modifications. Biodiesel is simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, almost odourless and essentially free of sulphur and aromatics.
How is Biodiesel Made?
Biodiesel is made through a chemical process called transesterification whereby the glycerin is separated from the fat or vegetable oil. The process leaves behind two products – methyl esters (the chemical name for biodiesel) and glycerin (a valuable byproduct usually sold to be used in soaps and other products).
Bio UK Fuels has a full IPPC licence and is a fully regulated biodiesel manufacturer.
What is the Chemistry of Biodiesel?
Biodiesel is defined as mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids derived from vegetable oils or animal fats. Typical used cooking oil uses Rape Seed Oil which has a carbon molecule length of 32 while diesel fuel requires a carbon chain of 12 in length for use in diesel engines; the transesterification process breaks this down to the optimum length chain.
Biodiesel refers to the pure fuel before blending with diesel fuel. Biodiesel blends are denoted as, “BXX” with “XX” representing the percentage of biodiesel contained in the blend (i.e.: B20 is 20% biodiesel, 80% petroleum diesel).
What is Biodiesel Used For?
Biodiesel, and other biofuels, can be used exactly as petroleum diesel would be, which is usually used to power vehicle engines. You could also use biodiesel for heating oils, powering electricity and other generators, powering farms and manufacturing machinery, and much more.
What are the Advantages of Biodiesel?
Biodiesel is a clean-burning diesel alternative that is made from renewable and recycled resources. The fuel comes with a myriad of benefits, which include:
Made from renewable and recycled materials, unlike petroleum diesel which is made out of finite resources
Reduced greenhouse gas emissions including CO2, which makes it better for the environment and causes less pollution
The fuel can be used as normal in most diesel engines
Reduced cost of fuel thanks to the GREEN tax relief
Enhanced engine health due to the lubrication provided by the fuel, which reduces engine problems
A safer alternative that causes much less damage if spilt
Are Biofuels Better For the Environment?
Yes, biofuels are better for the environment when compared to regular petroleum diesel and other alternatives. This is because biodiesel is made from renewable resources (recycled cooking oil that would have otherwise gone to waste) and the fuel has lower greenhouse gas emissions compared to petroleum diesel.
Does Biodiesel Produce CO2?
Biofuel does produce CO2 when burned. However, direct CO2 emissions from biofuels are less than their regular counterparts. Because the product is made from recycled cooking oil, it is significantly better for the environment as it burns cleaner than petroleum diesel and reduces waste.
Can a Regular Diesel Engine Run On Biodiesel?
Biodiesel is actually good for your engine. Unlike conventional diesel, biodiesel replenishes lubricity, reducing engine problems and enhancing the life and efficiency of your motor.
Bio diesel’s natural cleaning properties will also help to clean injectors, fuel lines, pumps and tanks, meaning that the overall maintenance costs are reduced.
Do I Have to Modify my Engine to Run Biodiesel?
No. Biodiesel is the original diesel, but your engine may need to adjust to the running of pure biodiesel, particularly if it has an engine management system set for mineral diesel (petroleum diesel). The engine management system may need to adjust to this fuel by using a mixture of 50% mineral and 50% biodiesel (B50).
Petroleum diesel coats the engine in carbon deposits. The purer (more refined) biodiesel will loosen these deposits, flushing them through to the filter – which may need to be replaced after two or three tanks of biodiesel have been used. During replacement you will see a dark brown sludge of carbon collected by the filter, which will be caused by the removal of the carbon deposits, your engine will now run more effectively and with better lubrication on biodiesel.
Biodiesel can be used in compression-ignition (diesel) engines with little or no modifications. Biodiesel is simple to use, biodegradable, nontoxic, almost odourless, and essentially free of sulphur and aromatics.
Is Biodiesel More Expensive Than Petroleum Diesel?
Biodiesel currently enjoys a small tax relief (to encourage this GREEN fuel usage), which allows Bio UK Fuels to pass on to customers a saving of around 5p per litre, (about 25p per gallon). Depending on your fuel usage, this will provide significant yearly savings.
If you know your fuel usage, you can calculate your savings using biodiesel. If not, there are various fuel usage calculators available online to estimate fuel savings per use and how to lower your carbon footprint.
Is Biodiesel the Same Thing as Raw Vegetable Oil?
No! Fuel-grade biodiesel must be produced to high-quality specifications by specialised machinery, which is rigorously checked in order to ensure quality is always maintained. Raw vegetable oil cannot meet biodiesel fuel specifications, it is not a motor fuel.
Our Biodiesel is legally approved for sale and wholesale, having been produced to the highest standards using the first machine of its type in the UK, which ensures everything from the consistency of biodiesel through to its viscosity.
Do Any Issues Come With Using Biodiesel?
When changing from petroleum diesel to pure Biodiesel (B100) carbon deposits from the petroleum diesel may be flushed through the system and deposited into the filter, which is why we recommend changing your filter after 3 tanks of fuel.
Vehicles made before 1992 may have issues with rubber piping wearing, depending on the model. However, for most cars, using pure biodiesel can improve your engine’s performance and the added lubrication may protect your engine from wear and tear.
Modern Engines with engine management systems may need time to adjust the chemical composition (oxygen levels) in the fuel. To address this, we suggest gradually introducing biodiesel from 50% upwards.
Some cars in the UK state that using a Bio Fuel will invalidate your manufacturer’s warranty. We advise that caution should be used, and you should discuss this with your dealer. Although, across Europe, the same cars are using biodiesel every day.
