JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – With the increased interest in biodiesel as a viable alternative fuel, ASTM International has published new quality specifications for biodiesel blends.

The ASTM specifications provide details on requirements for fuel characteristics as well as the relevant standard test methods to use for each. The new biodiesel standards apply to all finished biodiesel blends, regardless of the type of feedstock used to make the fuel. According to ASTM, biodiesel producers, petroleum companies, engine companies, vehicle manufacturers, pipeline operators, fleets and consumers will benefit from the new biodiesel blend specifications, using them for fuel preparation, quality checking, engine design and bid and purchasing contracts.

The new biodiesel blend specifications include:

* ASTM D975-08a, Specification for Diesel Fuel Oils — used for on- and off-road diesel applications; revised to include requirements for up to 5 percent biodiesel.

*ASTM D396-08b, Specification for Fuel Oils — used for home heating and boiler applications; revised to include requirements for up to 5 percent biodiesel.

* ASTM D7467-08, Specification for Diesel Fuel Oil, Biodiesel Blend (B6 to 20) — a completely new specification that covers finished fuel blends of between 6 (B6) and 20 (B20) percent biodiesel for on- and off-road diesel engine use.

ASTM International also approved some updates to the existing ASTM standard for biodiesel, ASTM D6751, which is designed to control pure biodiesel (B100) product quality prior to blending with conventional diesel fuel.

According to Bob McCormick, principal engineer on Fuels Performance at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the new ASTM standards for biodiesel blends are the result of years of negotiation between the various parties at ASTM and years of research on how the properties of biodiesel blends affect engine performance.

“NREL has conducted extensive research over the past four years to support development of these standards, which we believe will lead to an expansion of markets for biodiesel while at the same time ensuring that users have trouble-free performance," said McCormick.

The research was jointly supported by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement.

ASTM International has now officially published the biodiesel blend specifications on the ASTM Web site http://www.astm.org for general use.