# Biodiesel



## mattW (Sep 14, 2007)

At least initially, Biodiesel seems like a pretty good option to replace traditional oil. Biodiesel uses fats or vegetable oils and other ingredients to create a replacement for conventional oil derived diesel (petrodiesel). According to Wikipedia, this replacement functions in much the same way as petrodiesel but can substantially reduce green house emissions (other than nitrogen oxide), especially when a mix of the two fuels is used. The fuel is biodegradable, non-toxic to humans and can be used in conventional diesel engines. The fuel can even be recycled from used vegetable oil that would otherwise be discarded from restaurants, though if adopted widely demand would far exceed supply.

Biodiesel is not without its critics however, even within environmental spheres. The ease at which Biodiesel can be produced at home has been greatly exaggerated, with significant safety and cost issues to be done well. The production of palm oil crops for the fuel has already resulted in widespread deforestation in the Philippians and Indonesia, threatening natural wildlife and resulting in more CO2 from the burning of the rainforests. As it is based on crops, Biodiesel production can have a significant impact on food prices which is a significant humanitarian issue. Several University studies have concluded that the energy and pollution payback from crop-produced is poor and the process is not sustainable. While the end product of Biodiesel is quite environmentally friendly, the actual process of producing large scale quantities may actually be more damaging than the fuel they are trying to replace. Unless there is a major breakthrough in production (possibly with algae?), I’m afraid that sustainable Biodiesel will be limited to small scale production dependant on the availability of waste vegetable oil, and won’t be a major player in the green movement.


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## electro37 (May 18, 2008)

Hi,
 In the USA a company has discovered a very efficient method of turning "algae" (green scum forming on stagnant pools of water) into biodiesel, so efficiently in fact that 1 pool is sufficient to supply 1 State with all it's biodiesel needs!!!!! It is also being worked-on in England and Germany with the same fantastic efficiency rates.
 The OPEC Lobby has long been "using" the price of foods increase to put a "frightner" on the general public but now that has been "debunked" as a load of garbage.
 Also; the USA has been troubled by an infestation of a water weed called "kudzhu" which; it so happens will produce biodiesel in large, large, quantities. Now that the "dependence" on petroleum is over(bar the shouting) there will be seen a general shift in US policy towards anything OPEC. EFTA has already started it's "cold shoulder" towards the middle east. Now they have the "we dont need ya" policy in place. Diplomacy demands this shift be done slowly and gracefully by Europe, but the US will become "ugly" I think.


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## AviatorBJP (Sep 17, 2011)

The only bio fuels I support are the ones derived from algae. And there are several reasons why I think this.

If you use a crop (such as corn) as the bio-stock, then fuel production is competing with our food supply, our fresh water reserves, and our finite arable land. Add the fact that the agriculture infrastructure in developed countries run on vast quantities of petroleum, crop based bio-fuels are not saving us from using fossil fuels. Also, crops take seasons to grow, and the number of harvests will be limited during the course of a year. Algae has many advantages over annual crops.

Algae grows in salt water or sewage water. It can be harvested in the desert, from concrete ponds where nobody is growing food. Certain algae can double its biomass in a mere 24 hours, meaning daily harvests (or even better, constant harvesting.)

Algae, being a single cell organism, is relatively easy to genetically manipulate. Algae bio-fuel companies have successfully increased the lipid (oil) content of the algae to around 50% oil by weight. These same companies are also manipulating algae to produce the correct length of hydrocarbon chains to mimic specific fuels like kerosene jet fuel (carbon numbers 5-15 typically).

Algae bio-fuels have the potential to be carbon neutral. Any CO2 that results from burning algae bio-fuels had previously been sequestered from the atmosphere. Algae typically have to sequester twice as much CO2 from the air than will be put back into environment from burning the oil. The remaining carbon is trapped in the discarded husks of the algae (which can be used for other products.) 

Algae oil will not be limited to diesel type fuels. Through genetic manipulation or by refining technologies, bio-gas, bio-gasoline, bio-kerosene, bio-diesel, bio-lubrication oil, and bio-plastics will all be possible to manufacture in an environmentally friendly manner. Keep in mind most of our petroleum comes from dead marine dwelling algae (the most common lifeforms on the planet) that, over time, have been exposed to intense heat and pressure. We can just skip the "fossil" part of fossil fuel.

Forgetting any "environmentalist" reasons for algae bio-fuels, just consider it from an energy independence stand point. I don't think I need to beat this dead horse for anyone reading the DIY Electric Car forum.

Algae bio-fuel is not the sole answer to our nations energy woes, but it certainly can be integrated as part of the solution. Liquid fuels have their place where they make sense. Batteries have an ever growing realm of where they make sense. Battery technology is truly getting better all the time, and may, one day, supplant the liquid fuels by high capacity and by quick recharging. Electrons are one of the smallest forms of matter in the universe. And day after day, humans get better at packing them in tighter.


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