The new ASTM Cold Soak Filtration test is leaving many biodiesel producers and consumers “out in the cold”. Schroeder Biofuels is proud to present Cold ClearTM, the first multi-stage treatment system for solving the cold soak filtration dilemma in biodiesel and in biodiesel blends. Cold ClearTM is a new proprietary multi-stage separation technology designed specifically to ensure that biodiesel products conform to the new ASTM D6751 Standard for cold flow properties.
The Cold Flow Dilemma Filter plugging both in the ASTM procedure and in the field has been researched significantly with a range of answers to the single question. Most producers and consumers assumed poor cold flow performance was due to feedstock issues, or even poor biodiesel quality. When data started coming in from biodiesel producers around the nation, the answers became even more confusing. A wide range of cold soak results were found for biodiesel samples from a wide range of feedstock and an even wider range of producers. Obviously the cold flow problem was not just quality or feedstock dependent.
The Solution:Cold Clear TM Cold Clear TM technology produces a multi-stage filtration /adsorption system that ensures that any potential factors that would initiate crystalization or plugging on the filter do not occur. By sequentially removing certain impourities that create a higher than normal likelihood of surface crystalization on the filter, our Cold Clear technology ensures that your biodiesel can meet the ASTM specification for cold soak filtration. It also ensures that your fleet customers are receiving the very highest quality biodiesel and will minimize system plugging quality issues. Cold Clear is effective for B100 and a range of diesel blends meaning that producers, distributors, or even fleet consumers of biodiesel blends can use it.
The Technology
Schroeder Biofuels and Armor Separations Technology jointly developed Cold Clear TM as the answer for cold flow problems. The system is designed to be a single pass three-stage bank of filters/adsorbers that sequentially remove those compounds likely to cause filter plugging. The filter elements are disposable and easy to remove from the filter housings. Each bank of filters is rated to treat a fixed volume of B-100 biodiesel, while biodiesel blends are scaled by the blend percentage. We have developed a filter element life estimator program on our web site, www.coldclear.com.
Cold Clear Performance Data:
Feed Stock
Initial Cold Soak (seconds)
Cold Soak After Cold Clear (seconds)
Bacon 1
428
44
Chicken 1
570
63
Fats 1
437
37
Fats 2
258
21
Fats 3
174
28
Soy 1
321
32
Soy 2
718
23
Soy 3
246
29
White Grease 1
934
113
White Grease 2
746
124
Yellow Grease 1
793
57
Yellow Grease 2
809
65
Yellow Grease 3
732
61
Series
Flow
Throughput
BCC100
5
15,000 gallon
BCC300
15
40,000 gallon
BCC900
45
120,000 gallon
Schroeder Biofuels developed Cold Clear TM as the answer for cold flow problems. The system is designed to be a single pass three-stage bank of filters/adsorbers that sequentially remove those compounds likely to cause filter plugging. The filter elements are disposable and easy to remove from the filter housings. Multiple units can be run installed in parallel to achieve higher flow.