If ever you needed a financial incentive to make biodiesel at home then the government can certainly be credited with making it more and more cost effective.
Bear in mind we are in the hight of an international recession and the UK government having already demonstrated its total inability to manage the economy has compounded this by demonstrating its out and out greed.
The last time I benchmarked the fuel price in the UK it was £1.11 per litre - of that 65% went to the government 56.2p in fuel duty and 16.7p in vat. Of course since then both fuel duty and vat have both been..........(unbelievably) INCREASED!
If you are sick of being robbed blind by these useless, unaccountable amateurs then I strongly suggest that you invest in a small biodiesel processor, switch to a diesel car and start making your own fuel because as far as I can see the price is only going to keep on going up at the pump.
You'll here all sorts of excuses coming from the muppets that "run" the country, it will no doubt include "responsible cuts and spending", "reducing the nations debt" and of course "the environment, carbon emissions" . All the usual hogwash to cover up the fact that they were reckless for 12 years of bad government and now need to squeeze every penny they can out of the population.
Making biodiesel might be about being green for some of you. For me its about being in control of my hard earned cash instead of having the governments hands in my pockets at every possible moment.
Showing posts with label biodiesel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label biodiesel. Show all posts
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Making Biodiesel is Better & Cheaper than Using the Train
So I'm in the UK for a while as most of you know - and why not, it's one country where the government sure does like to tax the hell out of the automobile owner and especially their fuel.
Heck did you know that in the UK a US Gallon of Gas would cost $3.41 for the gas itself, plus $4.92 in government "fuel duty" (a tax), PLUS 17.5% sales tax on top!! What's that, about $10 a US gallon?!
Oh and that's just Gas by the way, Diesel is nearly 20% more expensive!!!!!
Anyhoo, I digress from my origonal story. I'm also a motorbike nut (and with the cost of gas in the UK you need to be......ok ok I know enough already) so I've been scouting around for a particular British bike I want, a Triumph.
I was lucky enough to find one, but at the other end of the country about 180 miles away according to my UK mapping software. So I jumped in the car which as it happens was empty, as an experiment I went to the local gas station and filled up. The total cost of the diesel was $150 or there abouts.
Driving the 180 miles (pretty fast I'll admit) used less than half a tank. I bought the bike ( a real piece of sex on two wheels I might add) and rode it home.
So the next day of course I have to take the train to collect the car. The cost of the simple, cheapest, 1 way ticket for the journey? Can you believe this? $125!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Then of course I have to shell out $10 in cab fare from the station, so $130 in all for the same journey using public transportation. That's damn nearly $1 a mile.
Now the simple fact is WORST case scenario I can make my own biodiesel for $3 a US Gallon and BEST case I can get it down to just $1. My car will hold 10 UK Gallons thats 8.3 US Gallons, so a full tank of home made fuel will cost me between $8 and $25 and take me 440 miles.
Now I know I end most of my posts with the same childish rant these days but it's only because I want to save you guys from yourselves - BUY a biodiesel guide, MAKE a simple processor using a tea urn like I showed you last time - START MAKING BIODIESEL AT HOME.
Till next time.
Heck did you know that in the UK a US Gallon of Gas would cost $3.41 for the gas itself, plus $4.92 in government "fuel duty" (a tax), PLUS 17.5% sales tax on top!! What's that, about $10 a US gallon?!
Oh and that's just Gas by the way, Diesel is nearly 20% more expensive!!!!!
Anyhoo, I digress from my origonal story. I'm also a motorbike nut (and with the cost of gas in the UK you need to be......ok ok I know enough already) so I've been scouting around for a particular British bike I want, a Triumph.
I was lucky enough to find one, but at the other end of the country about 180 miles away according to my UK mapping software. So I jumped in the car which as it happens was empty, as an experiment I went to the local gas station and filled up. The total cost of the diesel was $150 or there abouts.
Driving the 180 miles (pretty fast I'll admit) used less than half a tank. I bought the bike ( a real piece of sex on two wheels I might add) and rode it home.
So the next day of course I have to take the train to collect the car. The cost of the simple, cheapest, 1 way ticket for the journey? Can you believe this? $125!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Then of course I have to shell out $10 in cab fare from the station, so $130 in all for the same journey using public transportation. That's damn nearly $1 a mile.
Now the simple fact is WORST case scenario I can make my own biodiesel for $3 a US Gallon and BEST case I can get it down to just $1. My car will hold 10 UK Gallons thats 8.3 US Gallons, so a full tank of home made fuel will cost me between $8 and $25 and take me 440 miles.
Now I know I end most of my posts with the same childish rant these days but it's only because I want to save you guys from yourselves - BUY a biodiesel guide, MAKE a simple processor using a tea urn like I showed you last time - START MAKING BIODIESEL AT HOME.
Till next time.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
How to Make Biodiesel at Home with a simple Machine you can put together for less tha $200!
This is an excerpt from the Ultimate Biodiesel Guide 2008 (www.ultimate-biodiesel-guide.com):
One of the main objections I get from people when I talk to then about making biodiesel at home is that it takes a lot of fancy equipment and that it's expensive to get started. They've usually had a look on the web and found biodiesel processors like the FuelMeister and so on which cost upwards of $2000 dollars.
Now I know that with gas getting more expensive it's easier to justify spending money to make your own fuel but even so $2000 is $2000 bucks.
But what if you could put together a small processor for home use for less than $200, one that was small enough to run in your workshop? What if it required no welding, no mechanical skill, was safe reliable and easy to use? (..and this works for any country by the way..)
The good news is that I faced the same challenges when I started out. I'm no DIY exert I can tell you, and I sure as heck didn't have $2000 to spend. In the end the solution was simple....and here it is:
What the heck is it?
For the uninitiated this is called a "catering urn" - enter that into your search engine or ebay and you'll find you can pick these up for about $100 or less! Basically catering operations use these to keep up to 60 litres of water hot for tea and coffee at big events.
What's so Good about it?
To make biodiesel you need a reaction chamber that you can heat the oil in and add the methoxide to. That's exactly what this Urn is! It has a built in heating element, it even has a tap for easy draining!
Add to that it's stainless steel so it will handle the temperature and it's easy to clean. It's discreet, it's compact, it comes in a variety of capacities from 5 litres to 60 litres. It's just as safe as a "store bought" processor (maybe more safe....it's not plastic so it can't melt for a start).
Of course you will need some extra bits and pieces to complete your setup, a thermometer, something to stir the oil, some jerry cans for oil, biodiesel and methoxide etc etc. However there is no reason why you can't put together everything you need for $200 MAX.
So.........what's your excuse now for not making biodiesel at home?
All the best
Mike
One of the main objections I get from people when I talk to then about making biodiesel at home is that it takes a lot of fancy equipment and that it's expensive to get started. They've usually had a look on the web and found biodiesel processors like the FuelMeister and so on which cost upwards of $2000 dollars.
Now I know that with gas getting more expensive it's easier to justify spending money to make your own fuel but even so $2000 is $2000 bucks.
But what if you could put together a small processor for home use for less than $200, one that was small enough to run in your workshop? What if it required no welding, no mechanical skill, was safe reliable and easy to use? (..and this works for any country by the way..)
The good news is that I faced the same challenges when I started out. I'm no DIY exert I can tell you, and I sure as heck didn't have $2000 to spend. In the end the solution was simple....and here it is:
What the heck is it?
For the uninitiated this is called a "catering urn" - enter that into your search engine or ebay and you'll find you can pick these up for about $100 or less! Basically catering operations use these to keep up to 60 litres of water hot for tea and coffee at big events.
What's so Good about it?
To make biodiesel you need a reaction chamber that you can heat the oil in and add the methoxide to. That's exactly what this Urn is! It has a built in heating element, it even has a tap for easy draining!
Add to that it's stainless steel so it will handle the temperature and it's easy to clean. It's discreet, it's compact, it comes in a variety of capacities from 5 litres to 60 litres. It's just as safe as a "store bought" processor (maybe more safe....it's not plastic so it can't melt for a start).
Of course you will need some extra bits and pieces to complete your setup, a thermometer, something to stir the oil, some jerry cans for oil, biodiesel and methoxide etc etc. However there is no reason why you can't put together everything you need for $200 MAX.
So.........what's your excuse now for not making biodiesel at home?
All the best
Mike
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Biodiesel - Whether you Want it or Not!
From April something new will be appearing in your fuel pump. There will be no visible difference to the eye, there has only been limited publicity and the chances are your local petrol station will not even be inclined to tell you what is happening.
In a bid to tackle carbon emissions from cars, the EU has introduced the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation. It stipulates that all petrol sold in the UK must include at least 2.5 per cent biofuels, rising to 5 per cent by 2010.
What are biofuels?
Biofuels are a renewable alternative to fossil fuels. To classify, the fuel must be made from biological materials, for example biodiesel is made from processed vegetable oils such as soya bean oil.
They are renewable fuels because in the case of plants they absorb carbon dioxide during their growth. So when burnt they are merely releasing what they have already absorbed. In effect, they are carbon neutral.
All cars can cope with a blend of up to 5 per cent biofuels without any modifications to the engine. Some specially designed models on the market can now take a blend containing up to 85 per cent biofuel.
Production of biofuels has soared in recent years as countries look for alternatives to oil, which has become increasingly expensive and whose supply is heavily dependent on politically unstable regions, such as the Middle East.
However, as countries like the United States and Brazil have turned from growing corn or sugar for food to using it to produce ethanol, it has had a devastating side effect; food prices have been going up.
Food wars
Food wars
The more land farmers give over to producing energy crops the more food prices are pushed up by falling supplies of key crops. The issue is particularly acute in the Americas where at least a quarter of the US corn crop and more than half of Brazil's sugar cane crop is used for ethanol production.
Deforestation
The biggest concern of environmentalists is that as crops such as palm or soya bean become the new oil so more Asian and South American countries will be tempted to clear rainforests to grow them. Then not only would biodiversity-rich landscape be lost but also trees that absorbed vast quantities of carbon dioxide and helped reduce global carbon emissions.
Although recognising the benefits biofuels offer as an alternative to fossil fuels, many environmentalists now question whether we should be pushing ahead with adding them to our petrol just yet.
Friends of the Earth claim a recent poll found that almost 9 out of 10 Britons had no idea that biofuels were about to be added to their petrol. They argue that more resources should be put into making vehicles more fuel efficient and improving public transport.
“Most people will be horrified to know the Government is putting biofuels in our petrol when the damage they do to forests could make climate change worse,” said Friends of the Earth biofuels campaigner, Kenneth Richter. “People want to see real green transport solutions that will make a difference to their lives - like better public transport and smarter cars that burn less fuel,” he added.
Will the cost of Fuel go Down Then?
Absolutely not! Despite that fact that biodiesel can be mass produced cheaply from industrial waste and ethanol can be cheaply imported or produced locally you, the consumer, will not see one penny reduction in cost. So just as I predicted previously, it's not about the cost of oil at all, it's about the government putting their hand in your pocket for tax revenue on commodities they know you cannot live without.
Conclusion
The ONLY and I repeat ONLY way to escape this taxation trap is to make your own fuel! For a modest investment you can quietly make your own fuel in your shed for a few pennies a litre. You have been warned, stay keen stay green!
“Most people will be horrified to know the Government is putting biofuels in our petrol when the damage they do to forests could make climate change worse,” said Friends of the Earth biofuels campaigner, Kenneth Richter. “People want to see real green transport solutions that will make a difference to their lives - like better public transport and smarter cars that burn less fuel,” he added.
Will the cost of Fuel go Down Then?
Absolutely not! Despite that fact that biodiesel can be mass produced cheaply from industrial waste and ethanol can be cheaply imported or produced locally you, the consumer, will not see one penny reduction in cost. So just as I predicted previously, it's not about the cost of oil at all, it's about the government putting their hand in your pocket for tax revenue on commodities they know you cannot live without.
Conclusion
The ONLY and I repeat ONLY way to escape this taxation trap is to make your own fuel! For a modest investment you can quietly make your own fuel in your shed for a few pennies a litre. You have been warned, stay keen stay green!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
UK Government Rips off Motorists Again
If you ever needed a good reason to start making your own biodiesel in your back yard just take a look at what the UK government are doing to their motorists - and take heed America because you're next!
The UK government have just announced that they are going to add another 2p a litre of TAX. The chancellor says its an important part of their "green" credentials!! Edmund King threw his personal credibility on the fire by saying that "fuel price instability is largely influenced by the market."
I was outraged to read a news feed that stated: "Motorists can expect more pain after oil prices in New York reached a record high of more than 109 US dollars a barrel on Tuesday."
What utter nonesense! Hogwash! Rubbish! Utter LIES!!
I'm sat in Thailand today where the price at the pump for 98 grade fuel is 35 Baht a litre, that's 56 British pence or about $1. I checked with the local government rep here and NO the Thais don't source their oil from a magic fairy in the mountains, they buy it from the same places we all do, in dollars like everyone else.
The inconvenient TRUTH, is that 85% of the cost of fuel in the UK is TAX. It's an easy source of revenue for the government who know we can't do without it. Hiding behind the word "green" is just a pathetic insult to our intelligence.
- sorry I need to amend this with the following note: Note: in the UK, Value Added Tax (VAT), currently at 17.5%, is also charged on the price of the fuel and on the duty. At a pump price of 100p/litre (typical for unleaded as at November 2007), this would put the combined tax at 65.24p/litre, or approximately USD$4.84 per gallon. (Thus without tax, the retail price would be 34.76p per litre, making a combined tax rate of 188%.
You have been told. Buy a diesel car. Quietly make your own fuel in the shed. Stop taking the shaft from politicians (who by the way get a generous fuel allowance paid for by you the tax payer).
The UK government have just announced that they are going to add another 2p a litre of TAX. The chancellor says its an important part of their "green" credentials!! Edmund King threw his personal credibility on the fire by saying that "fuel price instability is largely influenced by the market."
I was outraged to read a news feed that stated: "Motorists can expect more pain after oil prices in New York reached a record high of more than 109 US dollars a barrel on Tuesday."
What utter nonesense! Hogwash! Rubbish! Utter LIES!!
I'm sat in Thailand today where the price at the pump for 98 grade fuel is 35 Baht a litre, that's 56 British pence or about $1. I checked with the local government rep here and NO the Thais don't source their oil from a magic fairy in the mountains, they buy it from the same places we all do, in dollars like everyone else.
The inconvenient TRUTH, is that 85% of the cost of fuel in the UK is TAX. It's an easy source of revenue for the government who know we can't do without it. Hiding behind the word "green" is just a pathetic insult to our intelligence.
- sorry I need to amend this with the following note: Note: in the UK, Value Added Tax (VAT), currently at 17.5%, is also charged on the price of the fuel and on the duty. At a pump price of 100p/litre (typical for unleaded as at November 2007), this would put the combined tax at 65.24p/litre, or approximately USD$4.84 per gallon. (Thus without tax, the retail price would be 34.76p per litre, making a combined tax rate of 188%.
You have been told. Buy a diesel car. Quietly make your own fuel in the shed. Stop taking the shaft from politicians (who by the way get a generous fuel allowance paid for by you the tax payer).
Saturday, February 02, 2008
First GREEN Passenger Jet Takes to the Air
The world's largest passenger aircraft, the Airbus A380, has become the first commercial plane to fly on "green" liquid fuel made from natural gas, rather than crude oil.
The super-plane, taller than five double decker buses and the width of a football pitch, took off from the UK to France using a synthetic fuel, developed using Gas to Liquid (GTL) technology.
The plane, which seats 555 passengers, left Airbus' UK headquarters in Filton, Bristol at 11.30am on Friday morning for a three-hour test flight to Toulouse.
Sjoerd Post, vice president of Shell Aviation, which developed the fuel, said that he hoped the plane would eventually run on even greener bio-fuels made from sustainable plant matter.
More News
But according to projections released by Airbus today that would be by 2020 at the earliest.
Mr Post said: "After more than 30 years of development and a decade of operations, we are now building, together with Qatar Petroleum, the world scale Pearl GTL plant in Qatar.
"In our drive for cleaner fuels, GTL technology can help reduce local emissions and encourage sustainable mobility."
Airbus president and CEO Tom Enders said: "Our alternative fuels roadmap requires innovation, diversity of ideas and options that needs to be explored."This takes bold cross-industry and cross-border collaboration. That's what we are showing today with our groundbreaking first test flight with alternative fuels. It is part and parcel of Airbus' commitment to providing leadership as an eco-efficient enterprise."
Sebastien Remy, head of Airbus's alternative fuels programme said: "The age of easy energy is over." He said GTL was better than traditional kerosene jet fuel because it did not deplete the world's oil supply, produced less emissions of local pollutants like carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons, and was virtually free of sulphur.
The super-plane, taller than five double decker buses and the width of a football pitch, took off from the UK to France using a synthetic fuel, developed using Gas to Liquid (GTL) technology.
The plane, which seats 555 passengers, left Airbus' UK headquarters in Filton, Bristol at 11.30am on Friday morning for a three-hour test flight to Toulouse.
Sjoerd Post, vice president of Shell Aviation, which developed the fuel, said that he hoped the plane would eventually run on even greener bio-fuels made from sustainable plant matter.
More News
But according to projections released by Airbus today that would be by 2020 at the earliest.
Mr Post said: "After more than 30 years of development and a decade of operations, we are now building, together with Qatar Petroleum, the world scale Pearl GTL plant in Qatar.
"In our drive for cleaner fuels, GTL technology can help reduce local emissions and encourage sustainable mobility."
Airbus president and CEO Tom Enders said: "Our alternative fuels roadmap requires innovation, diversity of ideas and options that needs to be explored."This takes bold cross-industry and cross-border collaboration. That's what we are showing today with our groundbreaking first test flight with alternative fuels. It is part and parcel of Airbus' commitment to providing leadership as an eco-efficient enterprise."
Sebastien Remy, head of Airbus's alternative fuels programme said: "The age of easy energy is over." He said GTL was better than traditional kerosene jet fuel because it did not deplete the world's oil supply, produced less emissions of local pollutants like carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons, and was virtually free of sulphur.
Monday, August 06, 2007
New Cheap Way to Purify your Biodiesel
A group of Chemists from the University of Leicester have developed a way of purifying biodiesel made from vegetable oils, which is cheap, simple and low in toxicity.
The team, led by Professor Andrew Abbott is able to remove glycerol, the main by-product of vegetable oil-based biodiesel, using ionic liquids made in part by vitamin B4 (choline chloride).
If left in biodiesel, glycerol (a syrupy sugar alcohol) would damage engines but this technique simply washes it out of the fuel. The ionic liquid developed by Professor Abbott uses a complex of choline chloride with glycerol to extract more glycerol out of the biodiesel.
The Leicester process is greener than traditional processes and effectively provides a sustainable methodology for the purification of biodiesel without the production of significant waste.
Professor Abbott commented: “We hope that further research will optimise the ionic liquid recycling and recovery of the glycerol. We are hoping to collaborate with a biodiesel producer to test this technology further.”
This process offers tremendous potential, if it becomes a commercial product it will be a very low cost low toxicity option to the current "dry wash" solutions.
The team, led by Professor Andrew Abbott is able to remove glycerol, the main by-product of vegetable oil-based biodiesel, using ionic liquids made in part by vitamin B4 (choline chloride).
If left in biodiesel, glycerol (a syrupy sugar alcohol) would damage engines but this technique simply washes it out of the fuel. The ionic liquid developed by Professor Abbott uses a complex of choline chloride with glycerol to extract more glycerol out of the biodiesel.
The Leicester process is greener than traditional processes and effectively provides a sustainable methodology for the purification of biodiesel without the production of significant waste.
Professor Abbott commented: “We hope that further research will optimise the ionic liquid recycling and recovery of the glycerol. We are hoping to collaborate with a biodiesel producer to test this technology further.”
This process offers tremendous potential, if it becomes a commercial product it will be a very low cost low toxicity option to the current "dry wash" solutions.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Making Biodiesel - For Aeroplanes!?
If you're reading this then you are probably making biodiesel at home or at the very least intrested in making and using biodiesel. One area that up until now has seemed largely ignored by the comercial biodiesel producers is aviation. Now the press and the government is starting to show an intrest in how much pollution aircraft cause and contribute to global warming - the dreaded words "carbon footprint" have been heard.
So I did some digging around on the subject and came up with some very interetsing developments at Perdue University:
As a professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Purdue University, Bernie Tao has worked on several experimental projects that challenge biomass parameters.
Over the years, Tao and his students have explored changes in plant microbial behavior to create useful products that people can use. One example is biodegradable plastics made with animal fat. The U.S. government has also asked Tao to look at vegetable oils and soybeans to create renewable products that would replace petroleum, a limited resource. For him, the projects aren't about repeating what scientific advances have already been made, such as renewable fuel, but discovering new products that perhaps no one had thought of before.
"We didn't have any use in making biodiesel fuel because it's pretty simple," Tao said. "But people would approach us and ask, 'What else can you do with this?' So we began to look at what other things you can make with it."
As Tao and his students have proven, the possibilities seem endless.
Getting the most out of biodiesel
The highest value petroleum product in the energy sector is aviation fuel, according to Tao. It differs from ground transportation fuel, and the main challenge is its cold temperature behavior. A biodiesel-fueled car has no problem running in weather 5 or 10 degrees below zero. However, biodiesel in airplane engines would easily crystallize with temperatures in the atmosphere between 40 and 58 degrees below zero. To obtain a more ideal aviation fuel, Tao and his students created an efficient fractionation method for biodiesel, extracting the materials that would quickly freeze in the fuel. Tao's improved biodiesel is being tested in commercial airline engines at Purdue University Airport, where Tao's students measure thrust, emissions and power of various biodiesel blends.
So I did some digging around on the subject and came up with some very interetsing developments at Perdue University:
As a professor in the Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering at Purdue University, Bernie Tao has worked on several experimental projects that challenge biomass parameters.
Over the years, Tao and his students have explored changes in plant microbial behavior to create useful products that people can use. One example is biodegradable plastics made with animal fat. The U.S. government has also asked Tao to look at vegetable oils and soybeans to create renewable products that would replace petroleum, a limited resource. For him, the projects aren't about repeating what scientific advances have already been made, such as renewable fuel, but discovering new products that perhaps no one had thought of before.
"We didn't have any use in making biodiesel fuel because it's pretty simple," Tao said. "But people would approach us and ask, 'What else can you do with this?' So we began to look at what other things you can make with it."
As Tao and his students have proven, the possibilities seem endless.
Getting the most out of biodiesel
The highest value petroleum product in the energy sector is aviation fuel, according to Tao. It differs from ground transportation fuel, and the main challenge is its cold temperature behavior. A biodiesel-fueled car has no problem running in weather 5 or 10 degrees below zero. However, biodiesel in airplane engines would easily crystallize with temperatures in the atmosphere between 40 and 58 degrees below zero. To obtain a more ideal aviation fuel, Tao and his students created an efficient fractionation method for biodiesel, extracting the materials that would quickly freeze in the fuel. Tao's improved biodiesel is being tested in commercial airline engines at Purdue University Airport, where Tao's students measure thrust, emissions and power of various biodiesel blends.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Biodiesel - The King of Beers?
Or I could have said "biodiesel - refreshes the parts that other beers cannot reach" for the benefit of readers in Europe!
A great story coming out of the UK from one of their largest brewers with over 2000 bar / restaurants accross the country.
The brewer is Weatherspoons and they are the first retailer in the UK to reccyle their own cooking oil into biodiesel to power their delivery vehicles.
To undertake the project Weatherspoon has partnered with DHL Excel Supply Chain and biodiesel energy company Argent.
Commercial Director Paul Harbottle said, "..it is important that we take steps to reduce our carbon footprint. We are pleased to have introduced the first vehicle powered on biodiesel, and our aim is to convert more of the vehicles to biodiesel in the near future."
Great work Weatherspoons - lets hope that more companies accross the globe pick this up and adopt the strategy, the impact on carbon footprints, pollution and fossil fuel dependancy will be huge.
A great story coming out of the UK from one of their largest brewers with over 2000 bar / restaurants accross the country.
The brewer is Weatherspoons and they are the first retailer in the UK to reccyle their own cooking oil into biodiesel to power their delivery vehicles.
To undertake the project Weatherspoon has partnered with DHL Excel Supply Chain and biodiesel energy company Argent.
Commercial Director Paul Harbottle said, "..it is important that we take steps to reduce our carbon footprint. We are pleased to have introduced the first vehicle powered on biodiesel, and our aim is to convert more of the vehicles to biodiesel in the near future."
Great work Weatherspoons - lets hope that more companies accross the globe pick this up and adopt the strategy, the impact on carbon footprints, pollution and fossil fuel dependancy will be huge.
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Make Biodiesel – Beat the Great Petrol Rip-Off.
If you needed any more convincing when it comes to whether or not you should start making biodiesel at home then here it is – the latest prices that people are paying around the world for petrol:
United Kingdom £3.76/gallon
Norway £3.41/gallon
Italy £3.10/gallon
Japan £2.70/gallon
Brazil £2.20/gallon
Australia £1.70/gallon
USA £1.35/gallon
Mexico £1.30/gallon
Saudi 49p/gallon!
Kuwait 40p/gallon!
Venezuela 8p/gallon !
And for those of you in the first 7 countries, guess what ? Most of what you are paying is tax to the government!
So don’t just sit there use one of the links of this blog and start making your own fuel TODAY. You will never look back and your bank balance will remind you of the wisdom of your actions.
N.B. It is unlikely in the extreme that these prices will do anything other than continue to go up…………..
United Kingdom £3.76/gallon
Norway £3.41/gallon
Italy £3.10/gallon
Japan £2.70/gallon
Brazil £2.20/gallon
Australia £1.70/gallon
USA £1.35/gallon
Mexico £1.30/gallon
Saudi 49p/gallon!
Kuwait 40p/gallon!
Venezuela 8p/gallon !
And for those of you in the first 7 countries, guess what ? Most of what you are paying is tax to the government!
So don’t just sit there use one of the links of this blog and start making your own fuel TODAY. You will never look back and your bank balance will remind you of the wisdom of your actions.
N.B. It is unlikely in the extreme that these prices will do anything other than continue to go up…………..
Monday, June 04, 2007
Biodiesel or Death?
I just read an article by Chuck Cole, the "Biodiesel Doctor" in Farm and Ranch News which raised my blood-pressure and it should raise yours too.
I don't agree with Chucks view, I think to be frank he misses some crucial facts, however I do agree that the situation means that we should all be making biodiesel and we should be completely independant from the middle east.
Here's Chucks main pitch: " Because the worldwide demand for oil is increasing and the supply is decreasing, it is clear that the long-term price of oil will continue to rise. Considering that the United States is the largest oil consumer in the world, this continuing price escalation should cause us serious concern. But that’s not the scariest part. Iraq and Saudi Arabia combined are the largest single geographical source of oil in the world. We all know that Iraq is extremely unstable. If we pull our troops out, who knows what could happen to this supply of oil. What most people don’t know is that Saudi Arabia is likely to become extremely unstable also.
Saudi Arabia is a ticking time bomb. In the 1980s, Saudi was a very rich country with $120 billion in cash reserves. Today, the reserves are les than $20 billion. The middle class of the country has literally been wiped out financially supporting the royal family. In 1981, the average Saudi citizen had an income of over $28,000 per year. By 2001, that income was down to $6,800 and is still decreasing today.
The oil income is going to support a huge royal family. The average Saudi prince fathers from 40 to 70 children during his lifetime. Thus, the royal family is growing at an unbelievable rate at the expense of the average citizen. Is it any wonder that al-Qaeda is becoming popular with Saudi’s disintegrating middle class? Sooner or later, the house of Saudi will fall. What then?
Who knows, but we can easily imagine a very, very serious interruption in the supply of oil. What if the downfall of Saudi Arabia also takes out Iraq? Or the fall of Iraq takes out Saudi Arabia?"
What you need to bear in mind is the following:
- in the last 10 years the population of Saudi has doubled, 20% of that is made up of foreign nationals so given that they don't levy taxes of course the average salary has declined. However with no taxes and a fairly low cost of living $6800 goes a very long way.
- that $20 billion is cash, lets not forget that the USA and the UK economies are massively in debt by comparison
- Saudi is the heart of the Islamic faith which is part of what gives it its religious stability and makes it potentially volatile.
I don't think any of these things that get Chcuk so excited are really the problem, or at least the whole problem.
In the seventies the USA persuaded the arab states lead by the Saudis to agree to only sell crude in US dollars. To sweeten the deal the US government promised to defend the Saudi families right to rule with military force if required. Last year Iran bodly stated its intention to break from this and sell its oil in Euros as many of its clients are European and the Euro is increasingly strong against the falling dollar. It should suprose no-one reading this that US military threats aimed at Iran have little to do in reality with their nuclear power program.
So two stark and frightening scenarios potentially extend from this: (1) Iran could lead a consortium of arab states to move away from the US Dollar standard and sell in Euros. If this happens the USA will no longer be able to manage economic inflation because the worldwide demand for dollars will fall and they sdimpy won't be able to mop them up - the effect will be to send the dollar in a further downward spiral and the ceonomic consequences will be catastrophic.
(2) Chuck may be right, perhaps there is socio-political instability in Saudi Arabia, perhaps Iraq or the threats to another Muslim nation (Iran) will push fundamentalists over the edge and cause a revolt.
What frightens me - and it should frighten you - is that the answer in both cases is war. Either an invasion of Iran to prevent them using the Euro, neatly wrapped up in a "Nuclear Weapons", WMD, spin story. Or a counter insurgency operation in Saudi to defend the royal family as promised.
In either case more American and UK soldiers will die and their citizens and economies will have to carry a heavy tax burden long into the future.
If we make biodiesel, if we make ourselves fuel independant then this kind of action is both unneccessary and indefensible. My suggestion? Make biodiesel at home, campaign for more biofuels, bombard your goverment representatives with requests to support biomass fuels.
Only when we are producing our own bio-fuels will be free of this threat, and able to build a stable economic future for ourselves and our children.
I don't agree with Chucks view, I think to be frank he misses some crucial facts, however I do agree that the situation means that we should all be making biodiesel and we should be completely independant from the middle east.
Here's Chucks main pitch: " Because the worldwide demand for oil is increasing and the supply is decreasing, it is clear that the long-term price of oil will continue to rise. Considering that the United States is the largest oil consumer in the world, this continuing price escalation should cause us serious concern. But that’s not the scariest part. Iraq and Saudi Arabia combined are the largest single geographical source of oil in the world. We all know that Iraq is extremely unstable. If we pull our troops out, who knows what could happen to this supply of oil. What most people don’t know is that Saudi Arabia is likely to become extremely unstable also.
Saudi Arabia is a ticking time bomb. In the 1980s, Saudi was a very rich country with $120 billion in cash reserves. Today, the reserves are les than $20 billion. The middle class of the country has literally been wiped out financially supporting the royal family. In 1981, the average Saudi citizen had an income of over $28,000 per year. By 2001, that income was down to $6,800 and is still decreasing today.
The oil income is going to support a huge royal family. The average Saudi prince fathers from 40 to 70 children during his lifetime. Thus, the royal family is growing at an unbelievable rate at the expense of the average citizen. Is it any wonder that al-Qaeda is becoming popular with Saudi’s disintegrating middle class? Sooner or later, the house of Saudi will fall. What then?
Who knows, but we can easily imagine a very, very serious interruption in the supply of oil. What if the downfall of Saudi Arabia also takes out Iraq? Or the fall of Iraq takes out Saudi Arabia?"
What you need to bear in mind is the following:
- in the last 10 years the population of Saudi has doubled, 20% of that is made up of foreign nationals so given that they don't levy taxes of course the average salary has declined. However with no taxes and a fairly low cost of living $6800 goes a very long way.
- that $20 billion is cash, lets not forget that the USA and the UK economies are massively in debt by comparison
- Saudi is the heart of the Islamic faith which is part of what gives it its religious stability and makes it potentially volatile.
I don't think any of these things that get Chcuk so excited are really the problem, or at least the whole problem.
In the seventies the USA persuaded the arab states lead by the Saudis to agree to only sell crude in US dollars. To sweeten the deal the US government promised to defend the Saudi families right to rule with military force if required. Last year Iran bodly stated its intention to break from this and sell its oil in Euros as many of its clients are European and the Euro is increasingly strong against the falling dollar. It should suprose no-one reading this that US military threats aimed at Iran have little to do in reality with their nuclear power program.
So two stark and frightening scenarios potentially extend from this: (1) Iran could lead a consortium of arab states to move away from the US Dollar standard and sell in Euros. If this happens the USA will no longer be able to manage economic inflation because the worldwide demand for dollars will fall and they sdimpy won't be able to mop them up - the effect will be to send the dollar in a further downward spiral and the ceonomic consequences will be catastrophic.
(2) Chuck may be right, perhaps there is socio-political instability in Saudi Arabia, perhaps Iraq or the threats to another Muslim nation (Iran) will push fundamentalists over the edge and cause a revolt.
What frightens me - and it should frighten you - is that the answer in both cases is war. Either an invasion of Iran to prevent them using the Euro, neatly wrapped up in a "Nuclear Weapons", WMD, spin story. Or a counter insurgency operation in Saudi to defend the royal family as promised.
In either case more American and UK soldiers will die and their citizens and economies will have to carry a heavy tax burden long into the future.
If we make biodiesel, if we make ourselves fuel independant then this kind of action is both unneccessary and indefensible. My suggestion? Make biodiesel at home, campaign for more biofuels, bombard your goverment representatives with requests to support biomass fuels.
Only when we are producing our own bio-fuels will be free of this threat, and able to build a stable economic future for ourselves and our children.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Promote Biodiesel & Kill the Drug Trade?
I was astonished to learn recently from roving reporter Michael Kanellos that Columbian farmers are starting to turn Coca fields over to growing crops for green fuels.
It's an amazing thought that without massive expense and bloodshed we could actually start to turn the tide in the South American drug trade by giving farmers there a lucrative alternative to growing drug crops.
There's the added advantage that it would also reduce the pressure at home to give over good arable land used for growing food for fuel crop production which , as we have already seen this year is pushing the price of corn, maize and flour steadily up in price - a trend that simply is not supportable in the long term.
One of the benefits of certain fuel oil crops, used for making biodiesel, like Jatropa for example is that it will produce a good yeild but will grow on absolutely marginal soil unsuited to food production - you know the kind of barren mountainside used to grow Coca and Marijuana, and in Afghanistan opium poppies used to make herion.
The main reason farmers turn to these crops is that it simply pays better than growing anything else. Now we have an opportunity through promoting the manufacture and use of biodiesel to offer them an attractive alternative which benefits us both.
You can support this move - Use biodiesel! Start making biodiesel at home and using biodiesel fuel in your car, generator or home heating system. The more your actions increase the demand for biodiesel fuel the more seed oil crops will need to be grown globally.
Looking to the future and notwithstanding the environmental, cost and freedom benefits of biodiesel I dare to hope that another collateral benefit with be a reduction in the growing of drug crops which ultimately fund terrorism and blight the lives of so many people.
It's an amazing thought that without massive expense and bloodshed we could actually start to turn the tide in the South American drug trade by giving farmers there a lucrative alternative to growing drug crops.
There's the added advantage that it would also reduce the pressure at home to give over good arable land used for growing food for fuel crop production which , as we have already seen this year is pushing the price of corn, maize and flour steadily up in price - a trend that simply is not supportable in the long term.
One of the benefits of certain fuel oil crops, used for making biodiesel, like Jatropa for example is that it will produce a good yeild but will grow on absolutely marginal soil unsuited to food production - you know the kind of barren mountainside used to grow Coca and Marijuana, and in Afghanistan opium poppies used to make herion.
The main reason farmers turn to these crops is that it simply pays better than growing anything else. Now we have an opportunity through promoting the manufacture and use of biodiesel to offer them an attractive alternative which benefits us both.
You can support this move - Use biodiesel! Start making biodiesel at home and using biodiesel fuel in your car, generator or home heating system. The more your actions increase the demand for biodiesel fuel the more seed oil crops will need to be grown globally.
Looking to the future and notwithstanding the environmental, cost and freedom benefits of biodiesel I dare to hope that another collateral benefit with be a reduction in the growing of drug crops which ultimately fund terrorism and blight the lives of so many people.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Biodiesel Beats Ethanol Every Time
It seems like forever that I have been banging the table and saying that ethanol is not the answer to the fossil fuel or climate chnage crisis. I'm not alone in this and often others don't say it inplicitly but instead clearly point a finger in the same direction. I thought I would share with you an article written by one of my associates By Nick Louth who writes for MSN and who in this article entitled "Why biofuels won't help climate change" points us in the direction of biodiesel once more.
What Nick doesn't implicitly state but we know is that not only does biodiesel have all the same climate benefits as ethanol when burnt, it can be grown on marginal land, from crops that grow quickly with little energy. Crucially though the average person can make biodiesel at home either from fresh or used oil making it a far superior and sustainable choice. Enjoy.
For all the excitement over the issue, biofuels are not going to be much help in reducing carbon emissions, or in slowing the consumption of oil reserves.
In fact, the entire biofuel industry is already in deep trouble because of that old adversary: economics.
Brazilian buses, the perfect scenario
The excitement of biofuels is in theory understandable. A bus in Brazil, running on ethanol derived from locally-grown sugar cane, produces 90% less carbon dioxide than a petrol-powered bus. The reason for that is the carbon absorbed from the atmosphere by the growing cane offsets almost all the carbon returned to the atmosphere by burning the ethanol to power the bus.
Better still, the bus would produce much less particle and sulphur dioxide pollution, even if running on a mix of petrol and ethanol. By using local crops a whole series of important developmental boxes can be ticked: rural incomes boosted, technology transferred to less developed countries, a useful new export for poor agrarian countries and so on. Landlocked African countries, using the Brazilian experience, could cut their reliance on pricey foreign fuel by growing sugar cane for ethanol.
Holy grail scenario
This is the holy grail of biofuel. Growing fuels to substitute for increasingly scarce oil supplies, and cutting reliance on energy from unstable regions like the Middle East.
We know it works, because until fuel prices crashed in the 1990s and made it uneconomic, Brazil was a huge producer of ethanol for domestic use.
So much for theory. The carbon gain isn’t automatic. It hinges on growing crops to make the fuel that would not otherwise be grown. If the crops are merely diverted from other uses then there is no new crop growth, and no offset to the carbon produced by the fuel burning.
Don’t use the rainforest
However, if new acreage of crops is grown this is most likely to be provided by the destruction of existing forest. “If even 5% of biofuels are sourced from wiping out existing ancient forests, you’ve lost all your carbon gain,” said Doug Parr, chief UK scientist at Greenpeace.
It is far from certain that there is fallow, non-forested but productive land available on the scale required to make the carbon equation of biofuels stand up.
Yet there is no doubting the official enthusiasm for biofuel. The European Union earlier this month set a target that by 2020, 10% of all petrol and diesel used in vehicles should come from biofuels. From farmers to financiers, £1 billion a year has been raised to plough into biofuel production.
Biofuels: one clean drop in an oily bucketful
The International Energy Agency (IEA) says that demand for crops for biofuels will soar from 41.5 million tones of oil equivalent in 2010 to 92.4 million by 2030. With government subsidies it may climb faster to 146.7 millio tonnes by 2030, the IEA predicts.
Yet that is still a drop in a bucket compared to the 3,809 million tonnes of oil consumed annually worldwide. Oil consumption is set to grow every year by 3.2-3.6%, according to the IEA. A single year’s growth would thus eat up the entire 2030 cumulative biofuel target. Plainly, we are hardly going to see much difference in fuel demand or in reliance on the Middle East because of these alternative fuels.
Besides, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reckons it would take 70% of Europe’s farmland devoted to biofuel crops to provide just 10% of road transport fuel. “Biofuels are not any kind of answer to global warming,” Parr concludes.
Corn to ethanol: Just a waste of energy?
Biofuel cultivation make most sense in the tropics where intense sunshine promotes rapid crop growth and carbon uptake, where labour is cheapest and where expensive (and oil-derived) fertilizers are not required. In temperate latitudes, though, the energy balance is reversed in crops like maize (corn), wheat and rapeseed.
Temperate ethanol production actually wastes energy. David Pimentel, Professor of Ecology and Agriculture at Cornell University in New York showed that it took 6,597 kilocalories of non-renewable energy to produce a litre of ethanol from US-grown corn. This ethanol contains only 5,130 kilocalories of energy per litre, essentially getting 22% less out than you put in.
Yet it is in just those traditional farming areas of Europe and North America where the enthusiasm, the spending and the government subsidies have been greatest. It is also there where protectionism has been most evident. The US currently levies a 54 cents a gallon tariff on imports of Brazilian ethanol, the one biofuel which actually is efficient.
Not about saving the world, more about farm subsidies
It is hard not to come to the conclusion that the greatest beneficiary of biofuel will not be the world’s energy users, but the rich world’s grain farmers. With £306 billion annually spent subsidising global agriculture, it is no surprise that farmers are standing in line to receive yet more handouts to support the markets for what they grow. In 2006, US farmers received over $5 billion (£2.6 billion) in subsidies to grow biofuel.
In Europe the crops grown for electricity generation biofuels, such as elephant grass and short-rotation willow coppice, are on fresh land. This is a carbon gain, but at some subsidy cost. The land most often used is “set-aside”: European farmers are paid once not to farm under EU rules, and then paid a second time to farm, so long as they grow only non-food crops. It’s a classic EU subsidy tangle that we taxpayers are funding.
Now economics weighs in
However, the soaring cost of the crops needed to produce biofuels is already threatening to make them uneconomic and ensure that they could not survive without subsidies. Prices of maize, wheat, palm oil, rapeseed (known as canola in the US) and soy oil futures are all soaring, making the price of biofuels much more expensive than the fuels they are intended to displace in our fuel tanks.
Maize prices (corn in the US) have reached a 10-year high of $4.31 a bushel in recent days, double the level of a year ago, while crude oil prices, having reached $76 a barrel in August are now back at levels of a year ago, $60. The rising cost of grain has been driven by an awful harvest of wheat this year in Australia, normally one of the world’s largest producers, plus increasing demand for biofuels. India, the world’s second largest wheat producer, has banned exports and released 365,000 tonnes from its strategic reserve to curb price rises.
Now beer drinkers need to worry
And it isn’t just bread eaters who need to be concerned. Beer drinkers too are likely to face price increases. The price of barley, an important constituent in beer production, has soared 86% in the last year because farmers are switching away from the crop to grow biofuel crops like rapeseed instead. Lager-maker Heineken has already warned that this is causing problems. Once again, note what is happening: the acreage devoted to biofuels is coming from switching crops, not growing anything new. There is no carbon gain.
Technology and mix problems
Biofuels face major technical and market problems too. Spanish engineering group Abengoa has threatened to suspend output at its largest bioethanol plant, which uses wheat to make a biofuel for petrol. But in Spain most drivers use diesel and ethanol can only be blended with petrol. The 200,000 tonne-per-year Dunkirk biofuel refinery planned by Neste of Finland and Total of France is jeopardised by technical problems because of the higher-than-expected temperatures required to turn vegetable oils into hydrocarbons.
Taxation: nein!
In Germany, demand for biodiesel has fallen 30% this year after the Federal government put a nine euro cent tax on each litre, with plans to escalate this to the 45 cent level on existing diesel by 2012. Achim Steiner, head of the UN Environment Programme said in a recent article: “The market acceptance of biofuels will accelerate if the costs of climate change and pollution are captured in the price of energy, an omission that unfairly makes conventional fuels look more financially attractive than they really are.” He’s right that conventional fuels don’t capture their climate change and pollution cost, but wrong to believe that biofuels always do.
Biofuels do not provide a pure carbon offset unless the crops would not otherwise be grown, their production is often highly energy intensive, and without a big rise in the price of oil they will continue to cost more to produce than the fuel they are supposed to replace.
A role to play, but lost in politics
Biofuels could have a role to play if they are grown only in the tropics, but the western world’s farmers do not want to lose out on the subsidies. And to keep biofuels competitive will cost a lot more in taxpayer subsidies. Are we really prepared to do this when they aren’t going to help us win the war on climate change?
In the end, if we are to tackle climate change we need to take a more fundamental look at the amount we drive and fly, how we heat our homes and the food and consumer goods we buy.
It’s never going to be fixed by merely changing the fuel we put in the tank.
What Nick doesn't implicitly state but we know is that not only does biodiesel have all the same climate benefits as ethanol when burnt, it can be grown on marginal land, from crops that grow quickly with little energy. Crucially though the average person can make biodiesel at home either from fresh or used oil making it a far superior and sustainable choice. Enjoy.
For all the excitement over the issue, biofuels are not going to be much help in reducing carbon emissions, or in slowing the consumption of oil reserves.
In fact, the entire biofuel industry is already in deep trouble because of that old adversary: economics.
Brazilian buses, the perfect scenario
The excitement of biofuels is in theory understandable. A bus in Brazil, running on ethanol derived from locally-grown sugar cane, produces 90% less carbon dioxide than a petrol-powered bus. The reason for that is the carbon absorbed from the atmosphere by the growing cane offsets almost all the carbon returned to the atmosphere by burning the ethanol to power the bus.
Better still, the bus would produce much less particle and sulphur dioxide pollution, even if running on a mix of petrol and ethanol. By using local crops a whole series of important developmental boxes can be ticked: rural incomes boosted, technology transferred to less developed countries, a useful new export for poor agrarian countries and so on. Landlocked African countries, using the Brazilian experience, could cut their reliance on pricey foreign fuel by growing sugar cane for ethanol.
Holy grail scenario
This is the holy grail of biofuel. Growing fuels to substitute for increasingly scarce oil supplies, and cutting reliance on energy from unstable regions like the Middle East.
We know it works, because until fuel prices crashed in the 1990s and made it uneconomic, Brazil was a huge producer of ethanol for domestic use.
So much for theory. The carbon gain isn’t automatic. It hinges on growing crops to make the fuel that would not otherwise be grown. If the crops are merely diverted from other uses then there is no new crop growth, and no offset to the carbon produced by the fuel burning.
Don’t use the rainforest
However, if new acreage of crops is grown this is most likely to be provided by the destruction of existing forest. “If even 5% of biofuels are sourced from wiping out existing ancient forests, you’ve lost all your carbon gain,” said Doug Parr, chief UK scientist at Greenpeace.
It is far from certain that there is fallow, non-forested but productive land available on the scale required to make the carbon equation of biofuels stand up.
Yet there is no doubting the official enthusiasm for biofuel. The European Union earlier this month set a target that by 2020, 10% of all petrol and diesel used in vehicles should come from biofuels. From farmers to financiers, £1 billion a year has been raised to plough into biofuel production.
Biofuels: one clean drop in an oily bucketful
The International Energy Agency (IEA) says that demand for crops for biofuels will soar from 41.5 million tones of oil equivalent in 2010 to 92.4 million by 2030. With government subsidies it may climb faster to 146.7 millio tonnes by 2030, the IEA predicts.
Yet that is still a drop in a bucket compared to the 3,809 million tonnes of oil consumed annually worldwide. Oil consumption is set to grow every year by 3.2-3.6%, according to the IEA. A single year’s growth would thus eat up the entire 2030 cumulative biofuel target. Plainly, we are hardly going to see much difference in fuel demand or in reliance on the Middle East because of these alternative fuels.
Besides, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reckons it would take 70% of Europe’s farmland devoted to biofuel crops to provide just 10% of road transport fuel. “Biofuels are not any kind of answer to global warming,” Parr concludes.
Corn to ethanol: Just a waste of energy?
Biofuel cultivation make most sense in the tropics where intense sunshine promotes rapid crop growth and carbon uptake, where labour is cheapest and where expensive (and oil-derived) fertilizers are not required. In temperate latitudes, though, the energy balance is reversed in crops like maize (corn), wheat and rapeseed.
Temperate ethanol production actually wastes energy. David Pimentel, Professor of Ecology and Agriculture at Cornell University in New York showed that it took 6,597 kilocalories of non-renewable energy to produce a litre of ethanol from US-grown corn. This ethanol contains only 5,130 kilocalories of energy per litre, essentially getting 22% less out than you put in.
Yet it is in just those traditional farming areas of Europe and North America where the enthusiasm, the spending and the government subsidies have been greatest. It is also there where protectionism has been most evident. The US currently levies a 54 cents a gallon tariff on imports of Brazilian ethanol, the one biofuel which actually is efficient.
Not about saving the world, more about farm subsidies
It is hard not to come to the conclusion that the greatest beneficiary of biofuel will not be the world’s energy users, but the rich world’s grain farmers. With £306 billion annually spent subsidising global agriculture, it is no surprise that farmers are standing in line to receive yet more handouts to support the markets for what they grow. In 2006, US farmers received over $5 billion (£2.6 billion) in subsidies to grow biofuel.
In Europe the crops grown for electricity generation biofuels, such as elephant grass and short-rotation willow coppice, are on fresh land. This is a carbon gain, but at some subsidy cost. The land most often used is “set-aside”: European farmers are paid once not to farm under EU rules, and then paid a second time to farm, so long as they grow only non-food crops. It’s a classic EU subsidy tangle that we taxpayers are funding.
Now economics weighs in
However, the soaring cost of the crops needed to produce biofuels is already threatening to make them uneconomic and ensure that they could not survive without subsidies. Prices of maize, wheat, palm oil, rapeseed (known as canola in the US) and soy oil futures are all soaring, making the price of biofuels much more expensive than the fuels they are intended to displace in our fuel tanks.
Maize prices (corn in the US) have reached a 10-year high of $4.31 a bushel in recent days, double the level of a year ago, while crude oil prices, having reached $76 a barrel in August are now back at levels of a year ago, $60. The rising cost of grain has been driven by an awful harvest of wheat this year in Australia, normally one of the world’s largest producers, plus increasing demand for biofuels. India, the world’s second largest wheat producer, has banned exports and released 365,000 tonnes from its strategic reserve to curb price rises.
Now beer drinkers need to worry
And it isn’t just bread eaters who need to be concerned. Beer drinkers too are likely to face price increases. The price of barley, an important constituent in beer production, has soared 86% in the last year because farmers are switching away from the crop to grow biofuel crops like rapeseed instead. Lager-maker Heineken has already warned that this is causing problems. Once again, note what is happening: the acreage devoted to biofuels is coming from switching crops, not growing anything new. There is no carbon gain.
Technology and mix problems
Biofuels face major technical and market problems too. Spanish engineering group Abengoa has threatened to suspend output at its largest bioethanol plant, which uses wheat to make a biofuel for petrol. But in Spain most drivers use diesel and ethanol can only be blended with petrol. The 200,000 tonne-per-year Dunkirk biofuel refinery planned by Neste of Finland and Total of France is jeopardised by technical problems because of the higher-than-expected temperatures required to turn vegetable oils into hydrocarbons.
Taxation: nein!
In Germany, demand for biodiesel has fallen 30% this year after the Federal government put a nine euro cent tax on each litre, with plans to escalate this to the 45 cent level on existing diesel by 2012. Achim Steiner, head of the UN Environment Programme said in a recent article: “The market acceptance of biofuels will accelerate if the costs of climate change and pollution are captured in the price of energy, an omission that unfairly makes conventional fuels look more financially attractive than they really are.” He’s right that conventional fuels don’t capture their climate change and pollution cost, but wrong to believe that biofuels always do.
Biofuels do not provide a pure carbon offset unless the crops would not otherwise be grown, their production is often highly energy intensive, and without a big rise in the price of oil they will continue to cost more to produce than the fuel they are supposed to replace.
A role to play, but lost in politics
Biofuels could have a role to play if they are grown only in the tropics, but the western world’s farmers do not want to lose out on the subsidies. And to keep biofuels competitive will cost a lot more in taxpayer subsidies. Are we really prepared to do this when they aren’t going to help us win the war on climate change?
In the end, if we are to tackle climate change we need to take a more fundamental look at the amount we drive and fly, how we heat our homes and the food and consumer goods we buy.
It’s never going to be fixed by merely changing the fuel we put in the tank.
Monday, February 19, 2007
Diesel Autos Finally Come of Age in the USA – Now you Must switch to Biodiesel.
On the 24th of January President Bush used his State of the Union speech to ask Americans to “expand the use of clean diesel vehicles” as part of his new energy plan to cut US domestic gasoline consumption by 20 percent over the next 10 years. Immediately auto manufacturers responded by unveiling a whole new generation of ultra-clean, brand new diesel passenger vehicles that not only meet the strictest emission standards ever set in the USA but also achieve 20-40 percent better fuel efficiency than comparable gasoline based models.
What does this mean for you? Simple, you will now have a growing range of autos to choose from that will have quiet , clean diesel powerplants – every single one of which will run on home produced biodiesel! If thought of running some old oily chugger has been putting you off then you no longer have an excuse.
Manufacturers, including Dodge, General Motors, Ford, BMW Group, Mercedes, Jeep, Audi, Volkswagen, Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi are planning to introduce “50 state” diesels in the next two years, including everything from compact cars to luxury sedans, SUVs and pick-up trucks.
DaimlerChrysler AG Chairman Dieter Zetsche announced that its new Dodge Ram and other vehicles will meet strict new U.S. diesel emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles that take effect in 2010 nearly three years ahead of time. The medium-duty Dodge Ram pick-ups, featuring a 6.7-liter Cummins turbodiesel powertrain, will be on sale soon in all 50 states. Chrysler also plans to introduce a diesel version of its Jeep Grand Cherokee early this year.
Also Volkswagen AG unveiled plans for its new diesel 2008 Jetta, which will help meet the new stringent EPA “Tier II Bin 5” emission requirements. The clean diesel Jetta meets these standards without the use of urea-based selected catalytic reduction technology (SCR). It is expected to achieve 40 MPG in the city and 60 MPG on the highway. In November, DaimlerChrysler announced it was joining forces with Volkswagen and its Audi unit to market clean-diesel Bluetec technology.
These vehicles set the stage for a coming wave of new, 50-state compliant diesel consumer vehicles slated to hit showroom floors and dealer lots nationwide for the 2008, 2009 and 2010 model years, including the Chevrolet Express Cargo Van, the Chevrolet Silverado HD Pickup, the Ford E-Series Cargo Van, the Ford F-Series Super Duty, the GMC Savana Cargo Van, the GMC Sierra Pickup, Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec, the Mercedes-Benz GL 320 CDI (Mid-size SUV), the Mercedes-Benz ML 320 CDI (Large SUV), the Mercedes-Benz R320 CDI (Touring Roadster Crossover), and the Volkswagen Touareg TDI.
Other prospective new clean diesels being seriously considered for introduction in the U.S. market include the Volkswagen Tiguan small SUV, the Honda Accord diesel, the Audi Q7 SUV, the Nissan Sentra, and the BMW 535d sedan and X5 Sports Activity Vehicle.
A car is certified by the EPA as “50-state compliant” when it meets “Tier II Bin 5” standards for emissions. Manufacturers are fiercely competing to bring the new technologically advanced passenger vehicle diesels into the U.S. market to help promote clean air, reduce carbon emissions and cut gasoline use. Emission regulations in California, Massachusetts, Vermont, New York, Maine and Rhode Island prohibited the sale of passenger car diesels in 2006, but new clean diesels will meet those regulations.
J.D. Power & Associates predicts that the diesel market in the United States could increase nearly 300 percent by 2015. And R.L. Polk & Associates shows that registration of diesel passenger vehicles jumped 80 percent from 2000-2005. In the light-duty market, diesel registrations showed 95 percent growth from 2000-2005, with 31 percent growth coming in 2005 alone.
Because of its low-end torque, unrivalled performance and towing power, diesel has long been a mainstay of the medium-duty pickup market. Further R.L. Polk data show that sales of diesel-powered medium-duty trucks increased 72 percent from 2000-2005.
Modern diesels are nothing like your fathers diesel cars; they are smooth driving, fast, have great acceleration and deliver 20% - 40% better fuel economy. Better than that you can make your own biodiesel fuel at home and use it in these vehicals without any modifications. There has never been a better time for you to make the move to biodiesel in the USA.
What does this mean for you? Simple, you will now have a growing range of autos to choose from that will have quiet , clean diesel powerplants – every single one of which will run on home produced biodiesel! If thought of running some old oily chugger has been putting you off then you no longer have an excuse.
Manufacturers, including Dodge, General Motors, Ford, BMW Group, Mercedes, Jeep, Audi, Volkswagen, Honda, Nissan and Mitsubishi are planning to introduce “50 state” diesels in the next two years, including everything from compact cars to luxury sedans, SUVs and pick-up trucks.
DaimlerChrysler AG Chairman Dieter Zetsche announced that its new Dodge Ram and other vehicles will meet strict new U.S. diesel emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles that take effect in 2010 nearly three years ahead of time. The medium-duty Dodge Ram pick-ups, featuring a 6.7-liter Cummins turbodiesel powertrain, will be on sale soon in all 50 states. Chrysler also plans to introduce a diesel version of its Jeep Grand Cherokee early this year.
Also Volkswagen AG unveiled plans for its new diesel 2008 Jetta, which will help meet the new stringent EPA “Tier II Bin 5” emission requirements. The clean diesel Jetta meets these standards without the use of urea-based selected catalytic reduction technology (SCR). It is expected to achieve 40 MPG in the city and 60 MPG on the highway. In November, DaimlerChrysler announced it was joining forces with Volkswagen and its Audi unit to market clean-diesel Bluetec technology.
These vehicles set the stage for a coming wave of new, 50-state compliant diesel consumer vehicles slated to hit showroom floors and dealer lots nationwide for the 2008, 2009 and 2010 model years, including the Chevrolet Express Cargo Van, the Chevrolet Silverado HD Pickup, the Ford E-Series Cargo Van, the Ford F-Series Super Duty, the GMC Savana Cargo Van, the GMC Sierra Pickup, Mercedes-Benz E320 Bluetec, the Mercedes-Benz GL 320 CDI (Mid-size SUV), the Mercedes-Benz ML 320 CDI (Large SUV), the Mercedes-Benz R320 CDI (Touring Roadster Crossover), and the Volkswagen Touareg TDI.
Other prospective new clean diesels being seriously considered for introduction in the U.S. market include the Volkswagen Tiguan small SUV, the Honda Accord diesel, the Audi Q7 SUV, the Nissan Sentra, and the BMW 535d sedan and X5 Sports Activity Vehicle.
A car is certified by the EPA as “50-state compliant” when it meets “Tier II Bin 5” standards for emissions. Manufacturers are fiercely competing to bring the new technologically advanced passenger vehicle diesels into the U.S. market to help promote clean air, reduce carbon emissions and cut gasoline use. Emission regulations in California, Massachusetts, Vermont, New York, Maine and Rhode Island prohibited the sale of passenger car diesels in 2006, but new clean diesels will meet those regulations.
J.D. Power & Associates predicts that the diesel market in the United States could increase nearly 300 percent by 2015. And R.L. Polk & Associates shows that registration of diesel passenger vehicles jumped 80 percent from 2000-2005. In the light-duty market, diesel registrations showed 95 percent growth from 2000-2005, with 31 percent growth coming in 2005 alone.
Because of its low-end torque, unrivalled performance and towing power, diesel has long been a mainstay of the medium-duty pickup market. Further R.L. Polk data show that sales of diesel-powered medium-duty trucks increased 72 percent from 2000-2005.
Modern diesels are nothing like your fathers diesel cars; they are smooth driving, fast, have great acceleration and deliver 20% - 40% better fuel economy. Better than that you can make your own biodiesel fuel at home and use it in these vehicals without any modifications. There has never been a better time for you to make the move to biodiesel in the USA.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Evil Ethanol, Biodiesel & Betamax Videos
Everywhere I read, I read that ethanol is the next fuel to save us from a fossil fuel dependant, over heated, polluted future.
This emphasis seems to be the case particularly in the USA. That’s understandable when you consider that the USA is the one great industrial nation that until recently never really embraced diesel engines like Europe. So you can understand their infatuation with ethanol – but that does not make it the right or the only choice.
In September Renault demonstrated its new hydrogen fuel cell powered 207 cabriolet, 28 bhp electric motor, 81 mph and an operating range of 218 miles, producing nothing but water as its sole emission. This month it was BMW with their new hydrogen power 7 series. They already have 3 fuel stations up and running in Germany with more planed. In October another manufacturer announced their hybrid system which converts braking energy not into electricity, but into compressed gas which is then used to help acceleration.
So clearly there are other options - however all of this is rather misses the point. None of these technologies help the power generation industry, nor do they meet the needs of the merchant navy, road hauliers or railway companies, all of whom, at least outside the USA, run on diesel.
Ethanol is a fuel which is complicated to make and thus easy to regulate, it continues to be cost effective only because of the massive government subsidies that it receives, it singularly fails to encourage the use of more fuel efficient diesel engines which simply delays the inevitable.
Which brings us neatly to the next point. The majority of ethanol in the USA is produced from corn – a food crop, a crop which requires good soil if it is to be grown in quantity. Do we face a future where we choose between fuel and food?
As all owners of a betmax video machine can testify, it is not always the best product that wins through. In the 80’s Sony’s betmax technology finally lost out to VHS, not because VHS was better but because it was better supported. With luminaries such as Bill Gates investing upwards of $84 million in ethanol production and distribution it is almost bound to be a success, if not an exclusive one.
In the US led fossil fuel replacement debate ethanol is clearly gaining ground steadily. However the world at large needs a diesel replacement, and the USA will sooner or later have to grasp the concept of fuel economy.
The only contender in this space is biodiesel, a clean fuel that can been made from crops like Jatropha, grown on the most marginal ground not suitable for food crops, and easily manufactured in plants small enough to fit into most peoples back yards.
What is certain is that whichever way this debate goes there is sure to be a rise in demand for a good, dependable supply of hardy, high yield crops whether for food or fuel production. Undoubtedly good news for Monsanto with their GM seeds.
This emphasis seems to be the case particularly in the USA. That’s understandable when you consider that the USA is the one great industrial nation that until recently never really embraced diesel engines like Europe. So you can understand their infatuation with ethanol – but that does not make it the right or the only choice.
In September Renault demonstrated its new hydrogen fuel cell powered 207 cabriolet, 28 bhp electric motor, 81 mph and an operating range of 218 miles, producing nothing but water as its sole emission. This month it was BMW with their new hydrogen power 7 series. They already have 3 fuel stations up and running in Germany with more planed. In October another manufacturer announced their hybrid system which converts braking energy not into electricity, but into compressed gas which is then used to help acceleration.
So clearly there are other options - however all of this is rather misses the point. None of these technologies help the power generation industry, nor do they meet the needs of the merchant navy, road hauliers or railway companies, all of whom, at least outside the USA, run on diesel.
Ethanol is a fuel which is complicated to make and thus easy to regulate, it continues to be cost effective only because of the massive government subsidies that it receives, it singularly fails to encourage the use of more fuel efficient diesel engines which simply delays the inevitable.
Which brings us neatly to the next point. The majority of ethanol in the USA is produced from corn – a food crop, a crop which requires good soil if it is to be grown in quantity. Do we face a future where we choose between fuel and food?
As all owners of a betmax video machine can testify, it is not always the best product that wins through. In the 80’s Sony’s betmax technology finally lost out to VHS, not because VHS was better but because it was better supported. With luminaries such as Bill Gates investing upwards of $84 million in ethanol production and distribution it is almost bound to be a success, if not an exclusive one.
In the US led fossil fuel replacement debate ethanol is clearly gaining ground steadily. However the world at large needs a diesel replacement, and the USA will sooner or later have to grasp the concept of fuel economy.
The only contender in this space is biodiesel, a clean fuel that can been made from crops like Jatropha, grown on the most marginal ground not suitable for food crops, and easily manufactured in plants small enough to fit into most peoples back yards.
What is certain is that whichever way this debate goes there is sure to be a rise in demand for a good, dependable supply of hardy, high yield crops whether for food or fuel production. Undoubtedly good news for Monsanto with their GM seeds.
Sunday, October 22, 2006
Make Biodiesel At Home or Go Broke
Make Biodiesel At Home
As the world’s reserve of fossil fuels becomes fast depleted, the need for reliable alternative fuel sources becomes more and more acute. One alternative fuel that is fast gaining recognition is biodiesel fuel. Like everything new and alternative, this fuel source is surrounded by many myths and falsehoods designed to scare people away. Our Ultimate Biodiesel Guide is committed to providing people with the facts. We not only want to encourage alternative fuel use, we also want people to make biodiesel at home.
The cost of fuel is becoming ridiculous. Although it would be easy to simply blame greedy oil company CEOs, the truth is that the rising cost is just as much a consequence of depleted resources and high demand. Additionally governments see fuel tax as an easy way to raise revenue - they know we can't do without it. I spoke to a friend of mine in the UK today - did you know that 80% of the cost of a gallon of gas in the UK is tax? Trust me, this will soon be "normal" everywhere.
Every year the cost of heating homes and driving to work is getting more and more out of hand, creating real financial hardships on the less wealthy of our society. Learning to make biodiesel at home can cut fuel and power costs by up to 90% per year. This means that fuel costs rise no longer, meaning bigger spending, it means bigger savings.
Learning to make your own biodiesel not only saves on the cost of fuel, it also saves on the maintenance of your machinery. Test after test has proven that those machines adapted to run on this fuel run more effectively, have fewer mechanical breakdowns, and last longer than those still running on fossil fuels. When maintenance fees are added to fuel savings, it is amazing how much less you will spend every year on driving a car, heating a home, and powering machinery using homemade biodiesel.
It is sad, but our society is virtually held hostage by rising fuel costs. When to go on vacation, how often to drive a vehicle, and even the temperature of the house are dictated by oil company executives. CEOs in suits should not control your life -- your life should be in your own hands. Homemade biodiesel is the key to freedom and it is the key to taking control over how you live your life and power your technology.
At www.ultimate-biodiese-guide.com we want everyone to know the benefits of making their own fuel. This is why we not only provide you with a comprehensive manual, but also continually update our site as new information becomes available. Please visit our resources section for a selection of informative articles, and check back often to learn more.
This article is courtesy of www.ultimate-biodiesel-guide.com
As the world’s reserve of fossil fuels becomes fast depleted, the need for reliable alternative fuel sources becomes more and more acute. One alternative fuel that is fast gaining recognition is biodiesel fuel. Like everything new and alternative, this fuel source is surrounded by many myths and falsehoods designed to scare people away. Our Ultimate Biodiesel Guide is committed to providing people with the facts. We not only want to encourage alternative fuel use, we also want people to make biodiesel at home.
The cost of fuel is becoming ridiculous. Although it would be easy to simply blame greedy oil company CEOs, the truth is that the rising cost is just as much a consequence of depleted resources and high demand. Additionally governments see fuel tax as an easy way to raise revenue - they know we can't do without it. I spoke to a friend of mine in the UK today - did you know that 80% of the cost of a gallon of gas in the UK is tax? Trust me, this will soon be "normal" everywhere.
Every year the cost of heating homes and driving to work is getting more and more out of hand, creating real financial hardships on the less wealthy of our society. Learning to make biodiesel at home can cut fuel and power costs by up to 90% per year. This means that fuel costs rise no longer, meaning bigger spending, it means bigger savings.
Learning to make your own biodiesel not only saves on the cost of fuel, it also saves on the maintenance of your machinery. Test after test has proven that those machines adapted to run on this fuel run more effectively, have fewer mechanical breakdowns, and last longer than those still running on fossil fuels. When maintenance fees are added to fuel savings, it is amazing how much less you will spend every year on driving a car, heating a home, and powering machinery using homemade biodiesel.
It is sad, but our society is virtually held hostage by rising fuel costs. When to go on vacation, how often to drive a vehicle, and even the temperature of the house are dictated by oil company executives. CEOs in suits should not control your life -- your life should be in your own hands. Homemade biodiesel is the key to freedom and it is the key to taking control over how you live your life and power your technology.
At www.ultimate-biodiese-guide.com we want everyone to know the benefits of making their own fuel. This is why we not only provide you with a comprehensive manual, but also continually update our site as new information becomes available. Please visit our resources section for a selection of informative articles, and check back often to learn more.
This article is courtesy of www.ultimate-biodiesel-guide.com
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
Making Biodiesel? Turn your "Waste" into Cash!
Introduction.
If you have already started making biodiesel you will know that the main by-product is glycerine. What you may not know is that you can turn this “waste” into a product you can use – or even sell to pay for your raw materials.
The product in question is soap. Most soap is glycerine based, cheap and easy to buy anywhere at a relatively low price. However “home-made” and “natural” or “homeopathic” soaps are much sought after product – and these are exactly the kinds of product that you can make at home with your left over glycerine.
Don’t believe me? Feel free to Google Home Made Soap, or search on Ebay – home made soap sells for up to $8 a bar!
There are two types of soap you can make – liquid and solid. I’ll cover liquid soap here, there’s a recipe for making solid bars in the new edition of this guide.
Making Liquid Soap from Glycerin
Liquid soap is particularly good for cleaning greasy hands or equipment and you can put it into any pump dispenser.
Step 1 – Remove any residual alcohol.
Your glycerine will contain almost 100% of the catalyst you used for you biodiesel reaction. As such, the glycerine and KOH (or lye) will have already formed soap by the time you drain it from your biodiesel reaction chamber.
There will be some unreacted alcohol left in your glycerine, which you will need to remove otherwise you will end up (at best) with a very harsh soap. To do this you need to heat your glycerine past the boiling point of the type of alcohol you used, which will cause the alcohol to evaporate off, leaving just the glycerine soap, for you to enhance into a great end product.
N.B. Make sure that you get the temperatures right; methanol will need to reach 148 degrees F (65 degrees C). Ethanol will need to reach 175 degrees F (79 degrees C). Allow the glycerine to stay heated for at least 10 minutes and then allow the glycerine to cool.
Step 2 – Enhancing your Soap
You can add essential oils and fragrances to your soap to enhance its aroma. Popular fragrances include:
Tea-tree oil
Vanilla
Oats (for exfoliation in solid soaps only)
Lavender
Peppermint
Rose
I particularly like the last three as you can grow them for free in your garden!
You will need to add about 150-200 millilitres of manufactured fragrance oil or 50 millilitres of essential oil per litre of glycerine; alternatively, you can add up to 300 grams of dried herbs/flowers. You can also enhance the color of your soap by simply adding food coloring.
Step 3 – Cooking it All Up
Take your alcohol free glycerine and heat it in a suitable container until it liquefies. Then simply pour in the fragrance oil and or the dried flowers/herbs. Stir lightly as you add the ingredients to ensure that they are evenly distributed.
Last but by no means least pour your liquid soap into a suitable container, a sturdy plastic tub or old pump soap dispenser and leave it to cool. Leave the lid off for about a week and the end result should be a fantastic, aromatic liquid soap.
Safety Tips
- Always make your biodiesel and soap in a well ventilated area.
- Always use an open container to encourage the circulation of air.
- Don’t breathe the fumes.
- Always use oven gloves and if possible goggles or glasses when handling hot liquids.
And Finally…..
If you are going to make biodiesel then why not turn this waste by-product into a useful, cash generating product? Also remember that like anything practice makes perfect, so don’t be afraid to experiment! Once you’ve made your soap you might want to consider purchasing some simple, cheap containers and labels and packaging the soap up for sale on Ebay, your own website or at your local car boot sale. Enjoy
Sunday, August 27, 2006
Biodiesel V Ethanol - Making the Right Choice
By: Mike Copinger of www.ultimate-biodiesel-guide.com
I’m sure that you have noticed that there has been a surge in interest in Ethanol as an alternative to regular fuel, especially in the USA. Bill Gates invested the better part of $40m in ethanol production and distribution; this month in SHELBY the town Planning Board granted site plan approval and issued a special use permit to Western New York Energy LLC on Monday, paving the way for construction of a major ethanol plant.
There seem to be ethanol plants going up all over the place. I can’t help but feel a little nostalgic – after all, when Henry Ford started out his cars were designed to run on ethanol (oil hadn’t really made it onto the scene by then) and in fact he invested considerable sums in ethanol production and distribution. It was only the bully boy tactics of the new oil barons that made petrol and petro diesel the no. 1 fuels in the market.
Nostalgic though I am, I have to also admit to being a skeptic. I mean why ethanol and not biodiesel? After all biodiesel recycles used oil that would otherwise end up in landfill into useable clean fuel. Better yet it’s simple for anyone to make biodiesel, with very basic equipment and instructions.
A recent study, done by researchers at the University of Minnesota and at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., points to the environmental benefits of biodiesel over ethanol (in this case made from corn), stating that ethanol provides 25 percent more energy a gallon than is required for its production, while soybean based biodiesel generates 93 percent more energy.
The study also identified that ethanol, in its production and consumption, reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 12 percent, compared with fossil fuels; however biodiesel, they found, reduces such emissions by 41 percent, compared with fossil fuels.
Moreover the study acknowledged that in order to produce a sufficient quantity of ethanol from crops like corn, food production would inevitably be compromised. On the other hand oil rich crops like jatropha will happily grow in marginal soil not suitable for other forms of agriculture.
So it begs the question again - why ethanol? Could it possibly be that in most parts of the civilized world you need a government license to run a still to produce any kind of alcohol?
It’s possible to make biodiesel at home with little more than a soda bottle, and some basic hardware store chemicals - but to make ethanol you need a still and thus a license, you're traceable and if unlicensed you are committing a criminal offence. Could it be that governments prefer a fuel that they can more tightly control, and tax?
As we work towards a greener, more sustainable future it's equally important that we choose the right kinds of fuels and for the right reasons.
I’m sure that you have noticed that there has been a surge in interest in Ethanol as an alternative to regular fuel, especially in the USA. Bill Gates invested the better part of $40m in ethanol production and distribution; this month in SHELBY the town Planning Board granted site plan approval and issued a special use permit to Western New York Energy LLC on Monday, paving the way for construction of a major ethanol plant.
There seem to be ethanol plants going up all over the place. I can’t help but feel a little nostalgic – after all, when Henry Ford started out his cars were designed to run on ethanol (oil hadn’t really made it onto the scene by then) and in fact he invested considerable sums in ethanol production and distribution. It was only the bully boy tactics of the new oil barons that made petrol and petro diesel the no. 1 fuels in the market.
Nostalgic though I am, I have to also admit to being a skeptic. I mean why ethanol and not biodiesel? After all biodiesel recycles used oil that would otherwise end up in landfill into useable clean fuel. Better yet it’s simple for anyone to make biodiesel, with very basic equipment and instructions.
A recent study, done by researchers at the University of Minnesota and at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., points to the environmental benefits of biodiesel over ethanol (in this case made from corn), stating that ethanol provides 25 percent more energy a gallon than is required for its production, while soybean based biodiesel generates 93 percent more energy.
The study also identified that ethanol, in its production and consumption, reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 12 percent, compared with fossil fuels; however biodiesel, they found, reduces such emissions by 41 percent, compared with fossil fuels.
Moreover the study acknowledged that in order to produce a sufficient quantity of ethanol from crops like corn, food production would inevitably be compromised. On the other hand oil rich crops like jatropha will happily grow in marginal soil not suitable for other forms of agriculture.
So it begs the question again - why ethanol? Could it possibly be that in most parts of the civilized world you need a government license to run a still to produce any kind of alcohol?
It’s possible to make biodiesel at home with little more than a soda bottle, and some basic hardware store chemicals - but to make ethanol you need a still and thus a license, you're traceable and if unlicensed you are committing a criminal offence. Could it be that governments prefer a fuel that they can more tightly control, and tax?
As we work towards a greener, more sustainable future it's equally important that we choose the right kinds of fuels and for the right reasons.
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