What is biodiesel?
Biodiesel is a substitute of diesel made from 100% renewable biological sources. As a fuel, biodiesel decreases harmful emissions by 80% while delivering equivalent or better engine performance compared to regular diesel.
Salient Features :
Biodiesel is compatible with any diesel engine. This eliminates the need for converting the engine to support biodiesel.
Biodiesel burns cleanly and can be produced domestically using palm, soybeans, canola and mustard seeds.
Processed biodiesel fuel is simple to use, bio-degradable, non-toxic and free of sulphur and aromatics.
Biodiesel is a product of the ecological process powered by the sun. By tapping into the farm-grown oil seed produce, biodiesel can be extracted and processed for use as a clean-burning fuel.
The oil-seed crops have various uses ranging from food products for humans and animals, to glycerin for cosmetics and oil for cooking. Biodiesel is just one product of these crops.
Biodiesel (blends of up to 20%) works fine with any diesel engine, with no modification to the engine or fuel system required. Moreover, biodiesel has a cleansing effect that may release deposits that accumulate on the tank walls and within pipes caused due to previous diesel usage. The deposits released as a result of this cleansing effect may end up in the fuel filters. Thus, fuel filters need to be checked more frequently initially.
Ensure that only fuel meeting the biodiesel specification (D6751) is used for maximum efficiency.
Biodiesel is the best Greenhouse Gas mitigation strategy for today’s medium and heavy duty vehicles. A 1998 biodiesel lifecycle study, jointly sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, concluded that biodiesel reduces net CO2 emissions by 78% compared to petroleum diesel. This is due to biodiesel’s closed carbon cycle. The CO2 released into the atmosphere when biodiesel is burned is recycled by growing plants, which are later processed into fuel.
No. Biodiesel has one of the highest energy-balance of any liquid fuel. The DOE/USDA lifecycle analysis computes that for every unit of fossil energy it takes to make biodiesel, 3.5 units of energy are gained. This takes into account the planting, harvesting, fuel production and fuel transportation to the end user.
Scientific research confirms that Biodiesel emissions have a less harmful impact on human health than petroleum diesel fuel. Pure biodiesel emissions have decreased levels of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) and nitrated PAH compounds that have been identified as potential cancer causing compounds. Also, particulate matter, an emission linked to asthma and other diseases, is reduced by about 47 percent; carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas, is reduced by about 48 percent.
In general, the standard storage and handling procedures used for petroleum diesel can be used for biodiesel. The fuel should be stored in a clean, dry and dark environment. Acceptable storage tank materials include aluminium, steel, fluorinated polyethylene, fluorinated polypropylene and teflon. Copper, brass, lead, tin, and zinc should be avoided. The DOE Biodiesel Handling/Use Guidelines can be found at www.bio-diesel.org.