Biodiesel content in diesel with near-infrared spectroscopy

The properties of biodiesel fuel, which is produced from vegetable oils or animal fat, are very similar to petroleum-derived diesel, but biodiesel pollutes less. In most countries the common biodiesel blend is B20, which ranges from 6% to 20% biodiesel content. Measuring the biodiesel content in diesel is important, as higher levels can cause deposits in older diesel engines, clogging the fuel filters and pumps. Fuels with high levels of biodiesel also tend to absorb more moisture compared to petroleum-derived fuels. With near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), the biodiesel content is determined in seconds without any sample preparation. Compared to other test methods like those used in ASTM D7467, biodiesel content analysis with NIR spectroscopy saves time and enables the implementation of online process monitoring with fiber optics.

The obtained NIR spectra (Figure 2) were used to create a prediction model for quantification of biodiesel content in diesel. The quality of the prediction model was evaluated using a correlation diagram (Figure 3) which displays a high correlation between the NIR prediction and the lab method. The respective figures of merit (FOM) confirm the feasibility during routine analysis.

This Application Note shows the results of a biodiesel content analysis test without the need for any sample preparation, using near-infrared spectroscopy in place of other more time-intensive analytical techniques. This ultimately leads to a reduction in workload and the related costs. Alongside the biodiesel content test, additional fuel quality parameters like cetane number, moisture, or flash point can be determined with NIRS.