Posted on 02/22/2007 7:16:14 AM PST by Reeses
About a year ago, Paul McNees chose to change his life by changing his fuel.
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"I just couldn't justify filling up that tank with gasoline anymore for a multitude of reasons," said McNees, 43, citing global warming and the war in Iraq. "This has been great. It's totally cleaned out the engine. It runs great, has a lot more power. It sort of smells like french fries -- it doesn't have that noxious diesel smell."
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Nationally, biodiesel consumption is up sharply -- from 500,000 gallons in 1999 to more than 75 million gallons in 2005. In the Bay Area, the number of customers filling up at Berkeley's Biofuel Oasis -- one of the region's few public biodiesel stations -- has climbed from about 200 three years ago to about 1,800 today.
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Much of biodiesel's appeal stems from the fuel's ability to perform as well as petroleum diesel while emitting fewer exhaust materials that cause smog, particulate pollution and global warming. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, pure biodiesel emits 67 percent fewer unburned hydrocarbons, 48 percent less carbon monoxide and 47 percent fewer particulates but 10 percent more nitrogen oxides.
Yet, despite its benefits and growing popularity, biodiesel might not be the fuel of the future because, as demand grows, the amount of land needed to produce the oils could become untenable, experts say.
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Researchers are looking for more productive, and sustainable, sources of biofuel -- including algae. They're focusing primarily on four types of high-oil algae -- diatoms, green algae, blue-green algae and golden algae -- that could be cultivated in farms or ponds. Oils could be extracted using chemical solvents, enzymes, expeller presses, osmotic shock or ultrasonic shock waves.
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
There's some unwritten law that 70% of Earth's surface can't be used by man. The leftists don't want technology-based solutions. What they really want is control over our lives to feed their narcissistic egos and placate their envious torment.
""I just couldn't justify filling up that tank with gasoline anymore for a multitude of reasons," said McNees, 43, citing global warming and the war in Iraq. "This has been great. It's totally cleaned out the engine. It runs great, has a lot more power."
Mr. McNees is putting biodiesel in a gasoline engine, according to this quote, lol.
So, did he switch from a gas to a diesel vehicle, and then to biodiesel? Or is he running fry grease in a gasoline engine?
More snappy reporting from the highly-educated MSM.
"Yet, despite its benefits and growing popularity, biodiesel might not be the fuel of the future because, as demand grows, the amount of land needed to produce the oils could become untenable, experts say."
I don't ever see a warning about this issue when the subject is ethanol, which is supposed to cover much of the US in new corn fields.
Someone was telling me that you can use vegetable oil in a regular engine? Is it that simple? Much of her science is totally bogus, so I took this with a grain of salt. And frankly, if it's big in Berkeley, I am really suspicious (having lived there for a number of years).
Because of its high energy content, the same biodiesel can be used in jet aircraft as well as piston aircraft, trains, ships, boats, everything. It should be the top research direction. Hydrogen and ethanol for transportation use isn't as practical.
OK, cancel the questions. I could jsut read the article ....
How long before we are warned of the dangers of inhaling second-hand transfats?
LNG might be, especially in a gas turbine hybrid.
What's outstanding about algae farming is it creates a closed loop system for CO2. We can use as much fuel as we want and there will be no net gain of CO2 in the atmosphere. I agree the leftists will put up a massive fight. They don't want solutions, they want to take our SUVs away.
Oils could be extracted using chemical solvents, enzymes, expeller presses, osmotic shock or ultrasonic shock waves.
Where does this come from, and is it solar powered? How much to these auxiliary "precesses" cost? What are the byproducts?
47 percent fewer particulates but 10 percent more nitrogen oxides.
Isn't his the nastiest stuff when it comes to the ***dreaded*** ozone hole? Won't cancers skyrocket?
Biodiesel appealed to the marginal members of society who would get it for free!
Bet that isn't happening much these days!
So many questions...
So few real answers.
Vegetable oil won't work in a spark ignition (gasoline0 engine. It will work in a diesel, but not for long unless further refined to remove the sugars.
It currently sells for $3.65 a gallon in the high cost restrictive Bay Area. You get much more mileage out of it though than 10% ethanol gasoline. The price will come down as the technology to produce it improves and economies of scale kick in. As soon as it does the Middle East sand and dookie litterbox will cease to be a factor in American prosperity.
The graphic above shows the prodution process using water to "wash" the biodiesel. This produces a unwanted "dirty" by-product. Our company has recently worked with a company called Greenline Industries which has a waterless system which is a very atractive aspect of their system. Check them out at this site:
http://www.greenlineindustries.com
What is interesting is that biodiesel can be made from almost any vegetable oil and is considered to be non-toxic and does not have the Haz-Mat issues that normal fuel has.
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