Peanuts being tested as source of biodiesel fuel

www.wilsoncountynews.com (TX) ^ | 08/21/2007 | Staff

[Red Badger]

Peanuts may be elbowing their way into the biodiesel fuel market. Agricultural Research Service scientists are searching for economically feasible peanut varieties for that very purpose.

Agronomist Wilson Faircloth at the Agricultural Research Service National Peanut Research Laboratory in Dawson, Ga., and Daniel Geller, a collaborative engineer at the University of Georgia, are testing a peanut called Georganic. It’s not suited to current commercial edible standards for peanuts, but is high in oil and has low production input costs.

Georganic — or similar varieties — will likely be the future of peanut biodiesel because it can be planted and grown with just one herbicide application for weed control, compared to the three to four applications typically sprayed during a growing season for edible peanuts.

Additionally, these fuel peanuts are grown without fungicides, which are the greatest input cost in traditional peanut production.

To further reduce production costs and increase yield, the research team is also studying technology such as conservation tillage and selection of varieties with high tolerance to multiple diseases. Currently, there are 24 peanut varieties being scrutinized in this biodiesel-screening project, including Georganic, which was developed by Agricultural Research Service breeders in Tifton, Ga.

Promising varieties also include DP-1 and Georgia-04S, a new high-oleic-acid, Spanish-type peanut. Many old and new peanut varieties are being tested for field performance, and their oils are being analyzed for diesel performance characteristics. It has been found that high-oleic-acid peanuts — a quality desired for extended shelf life of food products — also make the best biodiesel fuel.

Today, soybean oil is the primary oil used in the United States for biodiesel fuel production. Soybeans produce approximately 50 gallons of fuel per acre, while traditionally grown peanuts can produce approximately 120-130 gallons of biodiesel fuel per acre.

Agricultural Research Service is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief scientific research agency.

[kellynla]

I haven’t tried any of these. Except what they’re selling at the ARCO stations. LOL

But the idea of making my own biodiesel is something I find appealing. There was one FReeper who contacted me on one of the threads and said he was making his own biodiesel.

[mission9]

www.dieselsecret.com I tried their product last year in my tractor, and after good results, I bought an old 300sd and drove it around for a few months on a mix of old french fry oil and diesel. Caution, you must filter the oil well. I gunked up my fuel tank... Oh well. I am going to get an improved filtration fuel storage and pumping system and use the stuff again. No preheaters or other processing of the old french fry oil is neccesary.

[RJS1950]

I don’t see where this is all that new. People have been driving converted diesels that use old cooking oil which is many times sunflower and even peanut oil combinations.

[NTW64]

I better start wearing these shiny new glasses a bit more, I read the headline as “Parents being tested as source of biodiesel fuel”...

[Texas Mulerider]

Rapeseed (Canola) Is the way to go 127 gallons/acre and can be grown up north.

Algae can produce over 10,000 gallons per acre annually. It can be grown in areas that will not support food crops. If widescale biodiesel production is ever realized, it will be from algae, and not conventional food crops.

[lfrancis]

Your right, but I can’t grow algae :-}

What are the prodution costs per gallon associated with Algae Bio?

[Texas Mulerider]

Don’t have the link handy, but if you’ll google “widescale biodiesel algae” you’ll find a study done by Mike Briggs of the U. of New Hampshire at the top of the results. He’s done the numbers.