HOME | POLITICS | SPORTS | LIFE | SCI/TECH | OPEDS | HELPFUL TIPS
|
Feb. 26, 2005 Biodiesel is a fuel made from vegetable oil that runs in any unmodified diesel engine. Biodeisel can be made from any vegetable oil including oils pressed straight from the seed (virgin oils) such as soy, sunflower, canola, coconut and hemp. It can also be made from recycled cooking oils from restaurants. Even animal fats like beef tallow and fish oil can be used to make Biodiesel fuel. The use of Biodeisel dates back over 100 years to the invention of the diesel engine. Dr. Rudolf Diesel actually invented the diesel engine to run on many fuels including coal dust suspended in water, heavy mineral oil, and vegetable oil. Dr. Diesel’s first engine experiments were huge failures, but by the time he showed his engine at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1900, his engine was running on 100% peanut oil. In 1911 he stated “The diesel engine can be fed with vegetable oils, and would help considerably in the development of agriculture of the countries which use it.” In 1912, Diesel said, “The use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today. But such oils may become in course of time as important as petroleum and the coal tar products of the present time.” Since Dr. Diesel’s untimely death in 1913, his engine has been modified to run on the polluting petroleum fuel we now know as “diesel.” Nevertheless, his ideas on agriculture and his invention provide the foundation for a society fueled with clean, renewable fuel. The process of converting vegetable oil into Biodiesel fuel is called transesterification and is less complex than it sounds. Chemically, transesterification means taking a triglyceride molecule, or a complex fatty acid, neutralizing the free fatty acids, removing the glycerin, and creating an alcohol ester. This is accomplished by mixing methanol (wood alcohol) with lye (sodium hydroxide) to make sodium methoxide. This dangerous liquid is then mixed into vegetable oil. The entire mixture then settles. Glycerin is left on the bottom and methyl esters, or Biodiesel, is left on top. The glycerin can be used to make soap (or any one of 1,600 other products) and the methyl esters is washed and filtered. The resulting Biodiesel fuel when used directly in a Diesel engine will burn up to 75% cleaner than petroleum diesel fuel. Vegetable oil is a much more dense substance than diesel but, Biodiesel is very similar to diesel fuel. Biodeisel benefits from a viscosity that is twice that of diesel fuel and a molecular weight is roughly 1/3 of vegetable oil. Most Diesel engines were designed to use highly lubricating, high sulfur content fuel. Recent environmental legislature has forced diesel fuel to contain only a minimum amount of sulfur for lubricating purposes. Thus, the high viscosity of Biodiesel makes it a perfect fuel for diesel engines. It works in any unmodified diesel engine, and there is no conversion that is typical of other alternative fuels. The diesel engine can run on Biodiesel because it operates on the principle of compression ignition whereby air is compressed and then fuel is sprayed into the ultra-hot, ultra-pressured combustion chamber. Unlike gasoline engines, which use a spark to ignite the fuel/air mixture, diesel engines actually use fuel to ignite hot air. This simple process allows the diesel engine to run on thick fuels. Since Biodiesel is chemically similar to petroleum diesel fuel, you can pour Biodiesel right into the fuel tank of any diesel vehicle. Biodiesel has many advantages as a transport fuel. It has lower emissions, it is made domestically, which increases national security, it does not affect engine performance, and Biodiesel is produced from plants. Biodiesel can be stored anywhere that petroleum diesel fuel is stored. All diesel fueling infrastructure including pumps, tanks and transport trucks can use Biodiesel without modifications. It reduces Carbon Dioxide emissions, the primary cause of the Greenhouse Effect, by up to 100%. Since Biodiesel comes from plants and plants breathe carbon dioxide, there is no gain in carbon dioxide from its use. It is more lubricating than diesel fuel, it increases the engine life and it can be used to replace sulfur, a lubricating agent that, when burned, produces sulfur dioxide - the primary component in acid rain. Instead of sulfur, all diesel fuel sold in France contains 5% Biodiesel. It is safe to handle because it is biodegradable and non-toxic, making it safe to transport. It has a high flash point, or ignition temperature, of about 300 deg. F compared to petroleum diesel fuel, which has a flash point of 125 deg. F. Engines running on Biodiesel run normally and have similar fuel mileage to engines running on diesel fuel. Auto ignition, fuel consumption, power output, and engine torque are relatively unaffected by Biodeisel. It has a pleasant aroma similar to popcorn popping in comparison to the all-too- familiar stench of petroleum diesel fuel. Overall Biodiesel emissions are lower than gasoline or diesel fuel emissions, and compared to diesel it produces no sulfur, up to 20 times less carbon monoxide, and more free oxygen. Biodiesel has the following emissions characteristics when compared with petroleum diesel fuel. It reduces carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) by 100%, sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions by 100%, soot emissions by 40-60%, carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by 10-50%, hydrocarbon (HC) emissions by 10-50%, all polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and specifically the reduction of the following carcinogenic PAHs: phenanthren by 97%, enzofloroanthen by 56,% benzapyren by 71%, aldehydes and aromatic compounds by 13%. There can be a reduction, or an increase in nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions by 5-10% depending on the age and type of engine. NOx is a low- level emission that contributes to the yellowish haze around cities. NOx emissions are produced when something is burned in Earth’s atmosphere, (which is about 80% nitrogen and 20% oxygen). The range of increase in NOx emissions resulting from Biodiesel can be anywhere between 1-15% but is generally around 5%. The measurement varies widely according to engine type and the type of Biodiesel fuel used. For example, Cummins engines generally register lower NOx emissions than Caterpillar engines and Biodiesel made from rapeseed has often shown actual reductions in NOx emissions while Biodeisel made from soy generally shows an increase in NOx emissions. Engine age also affects NOx. Older diesel engine may produce up to 12 grams of NOx per brake horsepower hour (bhp) whereas newer diesel engines typically produce as little as 1.4 grams of NOx per bhp - less NOx emissions than many gasoline engines. Regardless of engine make or Biodiesel fuel type, there are two simple methods to reduce NOx emissions. NOx emissions are a function of temperature. In the case of Biodiesel, NOx emissions are a function of combustion temperature. The higher the heat of combustion, the greater the NOx emissions. Because Biodiesel contains more oxygen than diesel fuel, the heat of combustion is slightly higher. By retarding engine timing 1-3 degrees, combustion temperature will drop slightly and the NOx emissions of an engine running on Biodiesel will drop to levels at or below those recorded when the engine was running on diesel fuel. NOx emissions will also decrease with the use of a catalytic converter, a device that uses rare earth metals to break apart emissions. While catalytic converters have been standard on gasoline vehicles for some time, they have only recently become standard on diesel vehicles in the United States. The complete lack of sulfur in Biodiesel fuel allows the use of powerful NOx breaking catalysts that have been unusable until now. When diesel fuel or Biodiesel cools, wax crystals can form that can plug fuel filters and stop the flow of fuel to the engine. Diesel fuel #2 can be used down to about -23 C, and diesel fuel #1 (kerosene) can be used down to about -29 C. In contrast, Biodiesel made from rapeseed can be used down to -9 C, and from soy can be used down to -1 C and from used cooking oil or animal fat can be used down to roughly between 9-12 C. There are many ways to keep a diesel vehicle’s fuel system warm in winter such as engine block, fuel line, & tank heaters. In fact, some diesel vehicles come stock with cold weather equipment. Biodiesel can be produced from renewable, domestic sources and significantly reduce emissions compared with traditional petroleum fuels. It can be used in diesel engines on its own or blended with petroleum without any major modifications to the vehicle. Although soybean oil has been the most commonly used ingredient in Biodiesel, fryer grease from restaurants, has great potential, as according to the National Biodiesel Board, more than 8 billion gallons of fryer grease is dumped into landfills every year. In a world where we need to get ourselves off of petroleum for environmental and social reasons, the fact that we have the capacity to make our own fuel is quite significant, and at $1.75 to $2 a gallon, Biodiesel is no more expensive than petroleum diesel. It is a safe and effective petroleum substitute, and is widely praised by lawmakers, agricultural groups and clean-air advocates as a way to reduce the nation's dependence on foreign energy sources, increase the value of crops grown to produce Biodiesel and reduce vehicle emissions. It is now also possible to produce fuel from waste with a process called Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) which produces liquid fuel from waste cellulose materials. The biomass (waste material) can vary in composition from wood waste, newsprint, pulp sludge, agricultural residue, petroleum products, and even used tires. RTP heats the biomass between 400 and 950 C for 0.5 seconds at normal atmospheric pressure in the absence of oxygen and then rapidly cools it. The heatused during RTP is intense, uniform, and precisely controlled. Although the temperature is very high, the biomass does not burn. Instead, the rapid heating "cracks" the biomass. In other words, it breaks the chemical bonds between the molecules which converts the solid biomass into a liquid bio-oil. The rapid cooling stops the chemical reactions and preserves the bio-oil so that it isn't decomposed into coke or char, the products of incineration. The biomass needs no pretreatment; however, it must be dried to a moisture level of 12% and reduced to sawdust size (6mm). After RTP the bio-oil is mostly a mixture of water, carbonyls, depolymerized lignin and cellulose. The bio-oils produced will have different characteristics depending on the composition of the biomass, process conditions, and the recovery techniques. The bio-oils are useful because they can be used as a liquid fuel and contain saleable chemicals which can be extracted. The liquid remaining after all of the useful components are removed is burned to supply process heat to the plant. A company in Wisconsin has the first commercial boiler to be fired by RTP biofuel. They not only run the boiler using the biofuel but they extract the useful chemicals from it. One of the extracted chemicals is hydroxyacetaldehyde, a useful industrial product that is difficult to synthesize, but is easily produced by RTP. Hydroxyacetaldehyde is a natural browning agent in microwaveable foods, which interacts with proteins in the food on heating. Different browning shades can be produced depending on the concentration used, temperature, or cooking time. RTP is an environmentally-friendly, and cost effective process. During the process no waste stream is produced, and the left over bio- oil is recycled by being burned for heat. This process is ideal for areas where there are large quantities of biomass but no cost-effective means of disposal. Bio-oil is competitively priced with petroleum fuel oils. Production cost is approximately $0.05 per litre, which is competitive with heating oil. Bio-oil can be thought of as being "green" petroleum that will supplement the fast dwindling reserves of non- renewable "black" petroleum. This new bio-oil could be a replacement for diesel and gas turbine oil, heating oil, as well as having a byproduct of expensive fine chemicals. In a disposable world this new technology could be used to turn almost any garbage into fuel and eliminate many environmental problems. One cannot possess this knowledge, without understanding the implications of how we can easily cease using petroleum products while retaining the standard of living that we have become accustom to. ------------ About the author Sean Curtis: I am the author of Steal This Book Too! In the process of writing Steal This Book Too, I have spent years researching, and contemplating the animal that is human. I was born in 1959, during the perplexing cold war era, then experienced the social revolution of the 1960’s. I have, as countless others have, experienced first hand the hypocrisies of society. I recall that my first media memory was the assassination of President Kennedy. Pondering the inadequacies of society, such as poor child rearing, social injustice, moral injustice, political corruption, religion, and war, has lead meto examine human evolution; consequently, realizing that the theory is not portrayed correctly, or complete in its explanation. My insight into the complex animal that is human is revealed in my effort of portraying humankind’s existence throughout the ages, as well as how we can peaceably change society. I am curently writing a fiction novel titled The Island of Humans, in which I use my theories, and philosphies put forth in Steal This Bokk Too! as a basis for the plot. WWW.stealthisbooktoo.com Email: seancurtis007@sbcglobal.net Tell a friend about this site! ------------ All articles are EXCLUSIVE to Useless-Knowledge.com and are not allowed to be posted on other websites. ARTICLE THIEVES WILL BE PROSECUTED! |
||||||
|
|
|||||||
|
