“I’ve developed what I like to call a personal refinery, something like making your own wine, only you are making your own fuel,” Bicknell said. “I spent about a year and a half thinking about it before I even started the project, studying what people were trying when it came to alternate fuels and looking at ways to make it better.”
Bicknell said he doesn’t intend to sell his product, which he refers to as emulated diesel.
“There is an entire community of people that are trying alternate fuels, but I’ve never witnessed anyone get as far as I have with this system,” he said. “Most people are using straight vegetable oil and trying to modify their vehicle at a cost of $2,000 to $3,000. I’m actually custom designing the fuel.”
Bicknell said his goal is to save money and help the environment.
“The only way to meet these goals is for people to take it into their own hands and produce their own fuel that would pollute a lot less than petroleum.”
Bicknell gets used vegetable oil from local eating establishments that is destined to be hauled away as waste product.
“I fabricated the system myself and it allowed me to work at my own pace,” he said. “My system makes 100 litres at a time, but people can scale it down to a size they can work with using a smaller tank and mixer.”
To begin the process, he adds about 80 litres of used vegetable oil to a fabricated mixer made from a fibreglass water tank, eventually adding 20 litres of gasoline.
“You need to have the mixer running before you add the gasoline. Once the gas is mixed in with the oil, similar to diesel, it is quite stable,” he explained. “As well, it’s important to have the area well ventilated.”
Once the mixture is complete, Bicknell sends the batch to the main tank, which is a standard oil tank. The impurities fall to the bottom of the main tank and are drained off.
“The system works on its own as a process. The only energy I use is a small pool pump and in six days the fuel is ready for use.”
He said a major benefit of his system is financial, adding that he can run a car for $10 to $15 per week.
“I’m interested in educating people that there are alternatives that work. People are use to the idea that only petroleum can be used in vehicles, and I don’t believe that is true.”
Bicknell has turned to social media — Facebook and Youtube — to explain his system and how it works.
“I also have another video coming out soon where I’ll show you how to build your own personal refinery step by step,” he said. “There are a few custom pieces, but I specifically designed this system so that anyone in the world can afford to build it.”
Since he started using his own emulated diesel fuel, Bicknell said his 1997 Volkswagen has been running well.
“This project is a work in progress, but I’ve had nothing but success so far,” he said. “I’m getting results. It’s easy to be optimistic when you are getting results. I’m making a fluid that acts exactly the same as diesel, it doesn’t replace diesel, it emulates the properties of diesel and is good for the environment, that’s my motivation.”