Seed Oil Biofuel

Canada’s multi-billion dollar canola industry had a bumper crop in 2025 but faced unprecedented challenges due to tariffs and international trade uncertainty.

We made biofuel from five seed oils (canola, corn, sunflower, peanut, and grapeseed) through a process known as “transesterification” and compared their burning efficiency to traditional diesel fuel. Transesterification is a chemical reaction in which seed oil reacts with alcohol to produce biodiesel and glycerol (a co-product).

We combined methanol (CH3OH) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) to act as the catalyst for the transesterification reactions. We added this catalyst to each seed oil and stirred the seed oil mixture on a hot plate for one hour at 60’C. All five seed oils produced biofuel and a glycerin byproduct. We then poured the mixture into a separatory funnel to separate the glycerin byproduct from the biofuel.

To test the heating value of the fuel samples, we utilized a spirit burner to measure the increase in the temperature of water.

Let’s walk through our project in more detail and see if Canada can domestically produce seed biofuel to reduce our reliance on foreign trade and create a more environmentally friendly source of renewable energy.

Canada has a multi-billion dollar canola industry, which has historically relied upon exporting canola to international trade partners. In 2025, Canadian canola production reached a record high of 21 million tonnes[1]. But the Canadian industry faced unprecedented challenges due to Chinese and United States tariffs because almost 90% of Canadian canola exports have been historically acquired by China and the United States[2].

As of March 1, 2026, Chinese tariffs on Canadian canola were reduced from 100% to 15%[3]. However, the potential for future trade uncertainty remains due to Canada’s reliance on canola exports, particularly given how concentrated the export market is for Canadian canola and unpredictable international relations[2].

Given the current state of international trade uncertainty and global conflict, Canada should consider alternate methods to become less reliant on foreign trade partners. With respect to canola, consideration should be given to domestically producing canola biofuel within Canada. This may not only reduce Canada’s reliance on foreign trading partners, but also create a more environmentally friendly source of renewable energy.

Accordingly, we made biofuel from various seed oils (canola, corn, sunflower, peanut, and grapeseed) through the transesterification process and compared their burning efficiency to traditional diesel fuel. We did this by measuring and comparing the flammability of the fuels, the burn time, the heat generated by the fuels, and the fuel consumption.

Part 1: Create Biofuel from Each Seed Oil[4]

Mix 1.8g of potassium hydroxide (KOH) and 40mL of methanol (CH3OH) into a beaker on a hot plate in the fume hood. Stir until the KOH dissolves.

Add the CH3OH and KOH mixture to 200mL of seed oil and stir for 60 minutes at a temperature of 60’C.

Transfer the mixture to the separatory funnel.

Add 750mL of warm water and 3 tbsp of salt to the separatory funnel. Gently shake.

After the mixture has settled for 5 minutes, drain the water and glycerin byproduct from the separatory funnel.

Drain the remaining biofuel into a jar. Label and let sit for 24 hours minimum.

Strain the biofuel (top layer) from the remaining glycerin byproduct. Observe the clarity of the biofuel as an indicator of how well the biofuel separated from the glycerin.

Part 2: Measure Flammability, Burn Time, Heat Production, and Fuel Consumption[4]

Fill the spirit burner with fuel until half full.

Measure 100mL of tap water and pour into metal can.

Place the metal can on top of a wire mesh stand and insert the thermometer into the water.

Place the spirit burner under the wire mesh so that the wick is close to the can.

In a fume hood, light the wick for 5 seconds using a lighter.

After 5 minutes, put the metal lid on the wick to extinguish the flame.

Continue to record the water temperature for another 5 minutes.

Repeat the above steps five times for each biofuel and diesel.

For each trial, record each fuel weight before burning, the beginning water temperature, whether the wick ignites, the burn time, the water temperature after 5 minutes, and the fuel weight after burning. Observe the colour and quantity of smoke produced while burning.

1. Seed Biofuel Production:

All five seed oils produced biofuel.

Grapeseed oil produced the clearest biofuel that best separated the glycerin byproduct and water from the biofuel.

The sunflower biofuel did not separate very well from the glycerin byproduct. We produced only 54 g of sunflower biofuel, compared to 78 g to 91 g of biofuel obtained from the other seed oils.

Aggressively mixing water with biofuel causes it to emulsify, requiring salt and additional separation time.

2. Flammability:

All five biofuels and diesel successfully ignited each time.

All five biofuels and diesel stayed ignited for the full 5 minute testing period.

Diesel fuel created significant fumes along with black smoke while burning.

None of the biofuels generated any fumes and they didn’t create much smoke while burning.

3. Energy Production:

Diesel generated the most energy.

Peanut biofuel generated the most energy of the tested biofuels, followed by canola biofuel. Corn biofuel generated the least energy.

4. Fuel Consumption:

Sunflower biofuel utilized the most fuel, but the amount of sunflower biofuel burned also varied the most out of all biofuels, perhaps suggesting a testing error.

All biofuels other than sunflower consumed close to the same amount of fuel.

Diesel utilized approximately twice the amount of biofuel consumed by all seed oils other than sunflower.

5. Heating Value:

In our experiment diesel’s heating average value of 14.2MJ/kg was lower than all biofuels other than sunflower and corn; however, published research indicates that diesel’s heating value should be closer to 40MJ/kg[5].

Peanut biofuel’s average heating value of 39.8MJ/kg was more than double the heating value of all other tested biofuels and diesel.

The average heating values of the remaining biofuels were 21.3MJ/kg for canola, 14.4MJ/kg for grapeseed, 11.1MJ/kg for corn, and 4.4MJ/kg for sunflower.

Biofuel can be successfully produced from all five tested seed oils.

All five biofuels and diesel successfully ignited and continued burning for the full five minute test period.

Although diesel generated the most energy, it also utilized double the amount of fuel consumed by 4 out of 5 of the seed biofuels (other than sunflower), making its heating value equivalent to or less than that of the biofuels.

Peanut biofuel had the highest heating value at 40 MJ/kg making it the most efficient fuel tested; however, it is not commercially viable to produce in Canada because of our small peanut growing industry.

Canola biofuel’s average heating value of 21 MJ/kg exceeds the average diesel heating value of 14 MJ/kg; however, our average diesel heating value is significantly lower than the heating value of diesel in published research[5]. Further testing is required to address the inconsistency, but our data indicates that there is potential for Canada to domestically produce canola biofuel as an alternative to exporting most of our canola.

Producing biofuel as an alternative to diesel would also support a renewable source of energy.

Biofuels appeared to generate less emissions than diesel with no fumes and less black smoke.

Make more biodiesel from each seed oil and gain extended access to the lab to extend the time of the burning test to 30 minutes.

Burn each biofuel inside a small engine such as a lawnmower engine as another way to test the burning efficiency of the fuels.

Explore any engineering changes that would have to be made to motors to accommodate running biofuel.

Evaluate the commercial feasibility of domestically producing biofuel in Canada.

We wish to express our gratitude to the following people and organizations for their support and assistance with helping make our project a success:

Mr. Pilot and Superior Collegiate & Vocational Institute for facilitating access to their high school science lab and assisting with our chemistry knowledge;

Morven Verma for supervising and assisting us in the lab;

Mr. Schach for his assistance with our project proposal, particularly in respect of safety considerations;

Jessica Yemen for her assistance with ProjectBoard;

Our teachers, Mrs. Martins and Mrs. Dillon, for all of their work hosting our elementary school's science fair;

The Northwestern Ontario Regional Science Fair committee for all of their work hosting the regional science fair and assisting with our preparations for the Canada-Wide Science Fair; and

Our parents for supporting us, obtaining various supplies, and driving us.

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