FXSTD – Alternative Energy Center

By: David Tanguay
Biodiesel fuel is a form of "green energy for cars." Although a debate on the pros and cons regarding biodiesel seems to be pretty endless, those advocating it speak quite highly of how fueling your car with biodiesel is a pretty amazing thing.

So, what is biodiesel? "Biodiesel Fuel can be produced from a variety of natural crops including rapeseed, soybean, mustard, flax, sunflower, canola, palm oil, hemp, jatropha and waste vegetable oils. This fuel source is said to reduce engine wear and produce less harmful emissions. Biodiesel is used as an alternative fuel source, but requires engine modifications."

As stated, biodiesel can be created from numerous different resources. According to AgriFuels, "the oil and fats used to produce biodiesel will dictate important properties of the fuel, such as cold flow, energy content, and oxidative stability. Cold flow has to do with the temperature at which the fuel crystallizes. In regards to energy content, AgriFuels asserts that saturated fats have more energy. Oxidative stability deals the antioxidants. Some oils, such as soy, have antioxidants that lead to a longer shelf-life.

Various oil and grease can subsequently create biodiesel. Let's take a brief look at a few of the various biodiesel fuel derivatives, both sources that are currently used and future prospects, that AgriFuels advocates in order to get an idea of this:

* Virgin oil is vegetable oil that is usually grown, crushed, pressed, and filtered for the oil and other co-products, such as meal. Many different oil bearing crops are grown around the world.

* Soybean Oil is the most common virgin oil for Biodiesel in the USA. Farmers in the Mid-west can grow use a soybean for oil, animal feed, and other products such as vitamin E.

* Rapeseed Oil is the most common oil for Biodiesel in Europe. Rapeseed oil is also very common in Canada, known as the Canadian variety canola.

* Mustard Seed Oil is oil with a lot of potential. Mustard seed can be used for oil as well as an organic pesticide from the oil.

* Algal Oil might be the next big thing for Biodiesel. Some algaes are 50% oil!

* Recycled Oil is waste restaurant grease or used vegetable oil that is collected and made into Biodiesel. Many restaurants and business currently throw away used oil in the dumpster. Using our waste streams as feedstock for other products is always a sustainable option.

In the search for alternative sustainable energies, producing biodiesel fuel to operate vehicles may be a viable option. It would reduce the amount of "non-green" fossil fuels that are currently in use to power automobiles. In addition, it would diminish the dependence the United States currently has on other countries for oil, and it would increase American jobs on top of that.

There are so many different options to look at in the acquisition of biodiesel fuel, and it could only assist the nation in becoming greener.