Magdrive and mechanical seal industrial pumps
Horizontal and vertical centrifugal pumps

Oil Prices are rising and the demand for fuels is constantly increasing.
All industrialised countries are trying to reduce their dependence on fossil fuel imports to ensure that their economic growth is based on secure supplies. One of the most important alternatives is nowadays represented by biodiesel, whose importance is constantly increasing.
biodiesel is produced from renewable sources (mostly oil rich seeds), it does not contribute to climate changes (it generates 80% less CO2 and 50% less CO than standard fuels); it does not contain sulphur, therefore it is not dissipating highly polluting SO2 into the atmosphere.
biodiesel can be produced starting from several edible and non-edible oil rich seeds: rape seeds, soy beans, palm and sunflower seeds, etc. However, the first oil produced after first pressing cannot be used as such because of its high viscosity (70-80 cSt). It requires a chemical / physical process to "break" the chemical bonds of the fat molecules, reducing their viscosity down to 4-5 cSt.

A pre-treatment phase prepares the feed for the esterification. After pre-treatment the feed enters the main phase where, in the presence of methanol and a catalyst (usually NaOH), it is converted into biodiesel. The transesterification process generates glycerol as a high value sub-product (glycerol can be used in more than 800 applications!). A subsequent wash column removes glycerol and water from the product, expelling the biodiesel at the front end. A reverse flow of water enters the front of the column, washing the glycerol and excess methanol out of the product stream. A further column recovers the methanol from the water-glycerol mixture, returning it to the transesterification phase for re-use. Subsequent evaporation in another plant module purifies the crude glycerol for use in different kind of industries. Regardless of their dimensions and capacity, biodiesel plants all have this same similar structure.

From the delivery of seed oil up to the handling of the end product, CDR centrifugal pumps offer a tailored solution to the specific needs of that particular process phase: magnetic driven centrifugal pumps for increased safety when dangerous or flammable liquids are concerned. Pumps can be in stainless steel for methanol and biodiesel or with thermoplastic lining for handling corrosive media (caustic). Whenever dirty liquids are concerned (it can be the case for vegetable oil and glycerol), the same pumps are available also with a wide selection of conventional mechanical seals.