Increasing gas prices and concerns about global warning have resurrected interests in alternative fuels. An experiment entitled Biodiesel Synthesis and Characterization has been tailored to tie the topic of alternative fuels with the themes typically covered in the general chemistry laboratory at the Pennsylvania State University. Students ran a transesterification reaction where methyl esters were synthesized by reacting vegetable oil with methanol in the presence of a base catalyst. While the reaction was running, students worked in pairs to characterize two premade biodiesel samples by measuring their viscosities and densities. They applied their knowledge about appropriate fuel specifications to the collected data to identify which sample had the best fuel quality. Finally, the students used thin layer chromatography to determine if their reactions had gone to completion. Students were questioned on a range of topics including limiting reactants, catalysts, and separations. 28 students successfully completed this lab within a four hour lab period in the fall of 2007. When surveyed, they reported that they liked this experiment more than most other experiments they performed and also stated that they felt this topic was relevant to current chemical issues.

In the spring of 2008, this experiment was implemented into a second semester environmentally focused general chemistry lab. The experiment was modified to allow students to change one component of their reactions and to predict about how the change would influence the success of the reaction.