Ondokuz Mayıs University (OMU), which boasts approximately 57,000 students, has started producing biodiesel from waste oils collected from its cafeterias, restaurants, and canteens.

Under the leadership of Dr. Fevzi Şahin from the Faculty of Engineering's Department of Mechanical Engineering, and in collaboration with Dr. Gürkan Kara and Dr. Cengiz Görkem Dengiz, the university initiated this project about a year ago. The objective is to utilize the waste oils from the university's dining facilities to produce biodiesel in the faculty's laboratory. This biodiesel is intended for use in the university's diesel-powered service vehicles and generators, aiming to reduce carbon emissions.

The university's dining areas generate about 300 liters of waste oil monthly, and under this project, 55 liters of biodiesel produced from this amount have started being used in the university's generators. This initiative is expected to result in savings on purchased diesel fuel.

Dr. Şahin highlighted OMU's vision as a research university, especially in the context of climate change, sustainability, and clean production. He mentioned that the university issued a project call in these areas.

The project, titled "Production of Biodiesel from Campus Waste Oils for Use in University Service Vehicles," was accepted under this call. Dr. Şahin explained that they had successfully produced biodiesel from the waste oils collected from the university's cafeterias, canteens, and restaurants.

Emphasizing the tests conducted on the produced biodiesel, Dr. Şahin said, "Our measurements have shown that the biodiesel, an alternative fuel we produced, is of high quality. As a result, we anticipate not only reducing the fuel expenditure for our university's diesel-powered vehicles and generators but also significantly lowering our university's carbon emissions."

Furthermore, Dr. Şahin mentioned conducting a cost analysis, stating, "When we include glycerin, a natural byproduct of biodiesel, in our cost analysis, we can produce it at a cost below the market price of diesel. Ultimately, this project demonstrates the economic and environmental significance of producing biodiesel from waste oils for our university and our country. We continue our efforts to make biodiesel production a regular practice."