Crude glycerol is a byproduct of biodiesel production that requires refining before commercial use. Refined glycerin can be used in food, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and chemical formulations. Crude glycerin is used for composting, combustion, animal feed, and explosives. Purified glycerin is used in food processing, pharmaceuticals, and the chemical industry. Crude glycerin is used in industries that do not require high levels of purity.
Crude glycerol or glycerin is one of the byproducts of biodiesel production. Crude glycerine is unsuitable for most commercial applications due to high levels of impurities and requires further refinement before commercialization. After refining, purified glycerin can be used in the same applications as conventionally produced varieties, including food and pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and chemical formulations. However, refining crude glycerine is expensive, and the economics of the process have forced biodiesel producers to look for commercially viable uses for the crude product such as composting, combustion, animal feed, and explosives.
The use of biodiesel glycerin can be divided into two categories: refined products that meet commercial standards for pure glycerin and those based on unrefined crude glycerin. Refining crude glycerin removes methanol, free fatty acids, calcium, magnesium and sulfur and ensures minimum concentrations of glycerol, the active component of glycerin, of 80%. Pure glycerine refined from crude biodiesel byproducts is essentially the same as that produced by other means and can be used in similar applications. Crude glycerin, on the other hand, is used as-is or partially refined.
Glycerine refined from biodiesel is used in a number of industries, including food processing, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and chemical formulation. The food industry uses glycerin as a sweetener, solvent and thickener. It is also used as a humectant to keep foods moist and as a filler in many low-fat products. Pure glycerin from biodiesel is also included in many low glycemic index (GI) foods because it has about the same calorie or energy value as table sugar, but does not raise blood sugar levels.
The pharmaceutical industry uses biodiesel-refined glycerin in a variety of personal care and medical products as a lubricant, humectant, and texture-enhancing agent. These products include cough syrups, expectorants, toothpaste, skin care products, and shaving cream. Soap, hair care products and personal lubricants also contain glycerin as an additive. Glycerin is also commonly used as a tablet holding agent in solid dosage drug formulation.
The chemical industry has several applications for purified glycerine from biodiesel. These applications include fuel additives such as glycerin acetate, a component in surface coatings and as an additive in artists’ paints. Glycerin is also found in papermaking formulations, dyes, inks, and antifreezing agents.
Crude or partially refined glycerine is used in a number of industries that do not require high levels of purity. These include explosives manufacturing, aerobic composting and a range of animal feed products. Biodiesel-derived glycerin is also added to anti-dust products and has been used as the basis for combustion fuel pellets.
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