Customer Spotlight: Ogden High School Biodiesel Jet Engine

Recently we had a chance to visit Ogden High School in Ogden, Utah to see a really cool Biodiesel project they’d been working on. Roger Snow, the drafting teacher there, has been working with a group of students to teach them all about Biodiesel.


The class had the opportunity to make several Biodiesel batches and test them for various quality measures. They checked the oil for titration, water content, reacted mini batches and performed Biodiesel conversion testing and then experimented with dry washing and water washing the small batches to see which one came out the best.

Now for the really cool part! They didn’t just stop at making Biodiesel, they wanted to test the Biodiesel out in something that normally burns diesel fuel. In this case, that something would be a jet engine. Yes. You read right! A JET ENGINE!!!

Roger purchased a P80SE minature jet engine from Jetcat USA that could be run on kerosene or jet fuel. The goal was to see if they could fire it on Biodiesel and if they could, they would then measure several things as it ran.

In particular, they measured EGT’s (Exhaust Gas Temperature) and efficiency. Efficiency was measured by voltage the engine put out by turning a generator in the engine.

We had a chance to come & see the experiment on one of the days they fired the engine and were literally “blown away” by the coolness factor of it all!

We all stuck our protective hearing gear on, Roger fired it up, and we let it spin up. It was so cool!!! The thing sounded just like a regular jet engine too. Extremely loud!!!

They tested B50 with Kerosene and B20 with Kerosene. The B50 caused a flame-out in the engine, but the B20 was able to keep the engine running.

In an earlier test they found that they could run up to B50 with jet fuel without any problem.

Talk about one heck of a cool school project! The kids loved it, the administrators were impressed, and I was thrilled to be invited and watch it fire up on Biodiesel!

So, if you’re looking for that really cool project for Biodiesel, Odgen High just raised the bar a notch! Congratulations to Roger and his class for the impressive work they did!

Click on the pictures below to see all the fun!

About Utah Biodiesel Supply

Utah Biodiesel Supply is an industry leader in offering innovative ways to empower our customers to produce Biodiesel. From free online instructional videos on how to get started making this great renewable fuel to promotional items to help our customers proclaim their energy independence, Utah Biodiesel Supply has it covered. With the widest selection available of Biodiesel equipment, supplies, and promotional items, you're sure to learn something new about Biodiesel every time you visit.

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