A new product from a Florida biodiesel technology developer could cut down on the amount of methanol to brew biodiesel by up to 5 percent.

Biodiesel Magazine reports that Florida Biodiesel Inc. has developed the Cyclonic Mixer:

“The Mixer is a device that is made to shear the catalyst and the feedstock,” said Bill Gehrs, president of Florida Biodiesel, “giving a more complete mixing, which is able to reduce the amount of methanol used.” The mixer, Gehrs said, can save the plant operator between 2 to 5 percent in methanol costs.

Described by Gehrs as a “passive” device, the mixer has been used in other consumer and commercial systems and the Florida Biodiesel version can be scaled to work in a 60 gallon system all the way up to a 2.3 MMgy facility. “It has no moving parts. The high shear mixer is encased in a pipe and when the feedstock and the catalyst are moved through the multi-veined system in the mixer,” Gehrs explained, “it creates a high shearing action,” that ultimately does a better job of mixing.

Florida Biodiesel doesn’t produce the green fuel itself, but it has 187 dealers who sell add-on pieces for the industry.