BioCleanse Waste Cooking Oil Purification and Pretreatment System

Project Basics

Project Sponsor: Biofuels Technology Club

Amount Awarded: $3,000

Grant Awarded: Fall 2024

Project Status: In Progress

Project Description

The Biofuels Technology Club (BTC) is part of the College of Chemistry, and has a mission to help UC Berkeley achieve a zero-waste campus. By producing biodiesel from waste cooking oil generated by the campus dining halls, the club has a goal of eventually powering campus fleet vehicles with low-carbon, renewable fuel. While BTC is pursuing a high output production facility, initial treatment steps are required to purify the oil coming from the dining hall fryers so that the impurities do not interfere with the chemical conversion processes at our production facility. This is especially pertinent to BTC’s goal and mission as these purification steps are crucial for making the waste cooking oil we are obtaining from the dining halls usable for our process which converts it into renewable biodiesel.

Project Goals

Improve the production of biofuel from campus waste streams to reduce emissions, improve the local environment, and advance science among the youth.

Project Links 

Project Application (Coming Soon!)

Project Poster (Coming Soon!)

Project Website

https://btc.studentorg.berkeley.edu/