The Fukuoka Research Commercialization Center for Recycling Systems (FRC), a Kitakyushu-based prefectural institute, together with researchers from Fukuoka University, has developed a technology for fully recycling waste cooking oil. According to the Prefecture, between 480,000 and 500,000 tons of waste cooking oil were produced last year nationwide, but 70% of it was recycled into animal feed. Efforts to turn this resource into biodiesel have gained steam recently, but they faced a challenge. When waste oil is refined into biodiesel, about 20% ends up as an impure combination of water and oil called glycerin. After two years of research the FRC team found that it could separate the oil from the glycerin-containing water by adding diluted hydrochloric acid and agitating the mixture. The researchers say the oil could be used to power boilers and other machinery, while the glycerin-containing water could replace the expensive denitrification agents used in sewage treatment plants, thereby reducing costs. Source: Mainichi Shimbun, 5/29
