To support cleaner sources of energy and meet net zero objectives, biodiesel has become a widely used renewable fuel in the UK market. However, in the biodiesel production process, a large amount of crude glycerol is generated as a by-product. With traditional markets for glycerol now overwhelmed, managing this surplus has become a challenge and risks making biodiesel production less economically sustainable.

The vast array of possibilities that glycerol’s chemical structure offers make it a promising resource for creating valuable products, such as fuel additives or ingredients in everyday consumer goods. This project led by the Department of Chemical Engineering at The University of Manchester aims to research ways to transform glycerol into high-value chemicals.

Through a combination of market analysis with the assessment of environmental and economic sustainability, the project will target products of interest for process design and simulation to obtain them. As a result, the products with the highest potential will be identified to explore real-life scalability.

Meet the project team

Jesús Esteban, University of Manchester
Vincenzo Spallina, University of Manchester
Rosa Cuéllar-Franca, University of Manchester