In our commitment to sustainability research
and practice CERES has been experimenting with powering a diesel
van on (almost) nothing but vegetable oil! We run the 1988 Toyota
Hiace van (donated by Terry White) on bio-diesel and plan to for
the rest of its working life.
| What is Bio Diesel?
The fuel to run our Green vehicle is
derived from waste vegetable oil from fish and chip fryers
and the like. Whilst it is possible to use neat vegetable
oil in diesel engines it is preferable to convert it into
bio-diesel a thinner product that is much more amenable to
the modern diesel engine. Bio-diesel is produced after mixing
vegetable oil with a mixture of methanol (alcohol derived
from cellulose) and caustic soda. A 10% byproduct of glycerin
is produced (this can be used directly as a cleanser, for
making soap or simply composted). Bio diesel will run in any
diesel engine!
Clean and Green Fuel
Bio-diesel burns cleaner than conventional
diesel and petrol engines. Unlike conventional diesel, bio-diesel
produces much lower toxic gas emissions; including greatly reduced
carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide and carcinogenic PAH's (polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons). As importantly, bio-diesel is 'carbon neutral'
- net carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is actually reduced in the
process of growing of plants for oil and in the production of bio-diesel.
Bio-diesel is a greenhouse-friendly fuel. |
"Liesel" the CERES Bio-diesel van
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The future of sustainable transport?
Bio-diesel will be a definite contributor
to the sustainable economy of the future. It has been estimated
that we could be running over 10% of our current transport fleet
on this fuel produced from waste cooking oil alone! And when you
consider that crops like canola can produce up to 1000 kg of oil
per hectare annually, it doesn't take much imagination to realise
that we could be producing much or our own clean and green energy
and liberating ourselves from the yoke of the petroleum oil producers.
And some countries (often poor, with large debts to rich western
countries) that have an abundance of coconut palm and oil palm could
feasible run their whole transport fleet on bio-diesel (we have
already had interest from a school in Tonga). Consider that from
one hectare of the oil palm it is possible to produce up to 5000
kilos of oil per year! Bio-diesel is also an excellent transitionary
fuel on the way to the totally green sustainable economy. Almost
every diesel vehicle currently on the road could be converted to
bio-diesel with minor engine modifications, such as rubber supply
pipe hoses and the like.
Cooperative Transport
The exploration of alternative energy sources
is something that must be considered in the social as well as the
environmental context. There will be no quick technical fix to problems
that are largely social in their origin (the extensive growing of
crops such as canola for bio-diesel, for example, could have significant
social and environmental consequences). But alternative fuel research
and development does offer us opportunities to integrate the social
and community dimension. Bio-diesel is amenable to local production,
farmers can make their own - we have heard from quite a few people
who are producing it in their backyard. The CERES Green is therefore
also an experiment in cooperative transport.
You too can contribute to a sustainable future.
Utilising waste cooking oil for transport
is one of the ways we can begin the move toward a sustainable economy.
If you have a diesel vehicle (or any other application with a diesel
engine) you can actually run it on bio-diesel with out any harm
to the motor - in fact it provides increased lubrication and protection.
The most modern motors are also the most efficient and clean in
the burning of bio-diesel. With care and attention the production
of bio-diesel is not difficult. The ATA is currently selling producing
and selling bio-diesel .
More Information
If you want more information on bio-diesel
you could contact the ATA or look at back issues of their magazine,
Renew which has some good do it yourself articles on bio-diesel.
An excellent primer on bio-diesel is the Tickel's book From the
Fryer to the Fuel Tank -available over the net or from the ATA
(Ph 9388-9311). If you would like to hear more of how our van is
performing and actually witness the aroma of fish and chips that
it produces, drop down to the site some time. Also worth looking
at is the SBS insight program (that can be watched on line) that
goes deeper into the Bio-Diesel topic - which can be found at www.sbs.com.au/insight/index.php3?daysum=2003-11-27
For more information please contact
Tiki Swain
tiki@ceres.org.au
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