Glycerine is a clear, colorless, odorless, viscous liquid with a sweet taste, derived from petrochemical and natural feedstocks with the latter obtained from animal fat and vegetable oil products from grains. The market pays a premium for the kosher vegetable and USP natural glycerine. There are over 2,000 established uses for glycerine in the drug, food, beverage, chemicals and synthetic material industries. It is used in cosmetics, toiletries, sweeteners, solvents, softening agents, cough syrups, surface coatings, paints and many other products.
Crude Glycerine is an impure form of Glycerine and is primarily made as a by-product. Recently the reinvention of biodiesel has created much of the crude glycerine as it is a by-product from the manufacture of biodiesel. This supply has created market disruptions as it typically has many impurities in it including methanol, water and salts. A saleable grade of crude glycerine is generally at least 80% glycerine with less than 1% methanol in it. Crude Glycerine that has lower levels of glycerine or higher levels of methanol often has little or no value.
As a chemical processor Biofuels Technology LLC with its innovative and proprietary technologies is able to find uses for various grades of crude glycerine. This is done in an environmentally friendly method yeilding economic benefits without the need for government subsidies.
The Glycerin Spread
Refined glycerin prices have remained solid since earlier this year, but biodiesel producers selling crude glycerin, while retrieving modestly higher returns for their byproduct compared to last year, are still entering a saturated crude market. In the meantime, alternative uses for crude glycerin and capacity to refine it are on the rise.
Although high vegetable oil prices are curbing some of the enthusiasm from would-be biodiesel projects, analysts still expect steady growth from the U.S. biodiesel industry. Every million gallons of biodiesel produced pours roughly another hundred thousand gallons of crude glycerin into an already saturated market. “Most companies see the biodiesel industry as being in a growth mode,” Elsenbast says. “There’s a relatively small volume of glycerin coming from the biodiesel sector now compared with what’s expected from it in the future.” While raw glycerin returns are only slightly higher, some experts say it’s the glycerin refiners who are turning a welcomed profit over the past several months, as prices for the purer varieties have held quite strong. John Urbanchuk, a director with the Pennsylvania-based consulting firm LECG, says refined glycerin is retrieving anywhere from 30 to 40 cents a pound, depending on quality, grade and purity. “The refined glycerin market is strong,” Urbanchuk says. “The raw market, however, is still weak as we continue to see large supplies of unrefined glycerin heading for the market.” It therefore becomes a question of what to do with all of the crude. Should it be refined in the more traditional sense for sale as technical, pharmaceutical or food grade glycerin, or can alternative uses for the low-priced raw product directly be found?
