COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF BIODIESEL AND RENEWABLE DIESEL AS MOTOR FUELS

Abstract The purpose of the article is to consider and compare fuel properties of biodiesel and renewable diesel as alternative to petroleum diesel. Though produced from similar feedstock, they are fundamentally different types of biofuels. Biodiesel represents fatty acid methyl esters produced by transesterification, in the course of which organic fats and oils are converted into fatty acid alkyl esters by reacting with alcohols and catalysts. Biodiesel contains oxygen, which makes it chemically different from the regular ultra-low sulphur diesel. Renewable diesel is a paraffinic biomass-based liquid fuel originating from many types of vegetable oils as well as animal fats. Hydrotreating is the most common process to obtain hydrotreated vegetable oil, which is renewable biodiesel. Hydrotreated vegetable oil is a hydrocarbon fuel that is considered a “drop-in” replacement for petroleum diesel. Wide introduction of biofuels in the transport sector is an important part of the global green transition and climate change mitigation. Similar to bioethanol for petrol engines, biodiesel and renewable diesel are the alternative to fossil fuel use in diesel engines. The choice between biodiesel and renewable diesel or even other biofuels suitable for the diesel engine depends on a number of technical, environmental and economic factors.