Advantages of Biodiesel.

A List of the Advantages of Biodiesel.

1. Biodiesel is Environmentally Friendly.
2. Biodiesel has Economic Advantages.
3. No Engine Modifications Necessary.
4. Biodiesel can be Made at Home.
5. Biodiesel can be Made from Waste Products.
6. Biodiesel Byproducts.
7. Biodiesel prolongs Engine Life.

Biodiesel is Environmentally Friendly.

Biodiesel is less toxic than salt and biodegrades quicker than sugar.When Biodiesel is blended with petroluem diesel it even improves the biodegradeability thereof. In 1989 when the Exxon-Valdez spilled 10.8 Millions US Gallons (40.8 Million Liters) of crude oil, biodiesel was one of the things that they used to clean up the oil.

Biodiesel is the only alternative fuel in the USA that have successfully completed the, EPA required, Tier I and Tier II health effects testing under the Clean Air Act. These tests have showed that biodiesel does not pose a risk to human health and that it significantly reduce all regulated emmisions.

Biodiesel does not contain any Sulphur or aromatics and using biodiesel in any conventional compression ignition diesel engine will result in a substantial reduction of unburned Hydrocarbons, Carbon Monoxide and Particulate matter.

A study by the US Department of Energy found that the production and use of Biodiesel compared to Petroluem Diesel, resulted in a 78.5% reduction of Carbon Dioxide Emissions.

The Emissions of biodiesel when compared to conventional Petrodiesel.

- Total Unburned Hydrocarbons - 67% Reduction.

- Carbon Monoxide - 48% Reduction.

- Particulate Matter - 47% Reduction. Nitrogen Oxide (NO_x) - 10% Increase

And most important, Biodiesel has a positive energy balance. That means, for every one unit of energy needed to produce Biodiesel, 3.24 units of energy is gained.

Biodiesel has Economic Advantages.

Using Biodiesel makes a lot of business sense. It is estimated that the military cost of securing foreign oil is between $45 - $115 Billion. Add to that the enviromental cost of fossil fuel at $45 a Barrel and the Foreign tax Credits at $4 Billion. And that is not even the worse of it all: for every $1 Billion spent on foreign oil, America loses 10,000 - 25,000 jobs.

When you consider all these things it makes a lot of sense to use Biodiesel rather than petroluem diesel. Biodiesel can be produced locally from locally sourced feedstock or waste products like used cooking oil. Producing biodiesel locally and not importing oil will have a positive effect on the country's balance of trade and will create jobs rather than cost jobs

No Engine Modifications Necessary.

When you want to use Biodiesel in a a conventional petrodiesel engine it is not necessary to make any modifications to that engine whatsoever. When converting from pertodiesel to biodiesel it is best to do it gradually. First fill up with a 10% biodiesel - petrodiesel blend and then gradually increase the percentage biodiesel in the blend. It is not a good idea to run on 100% Biodiesel (or B100) straight from the beginning when you have been using conventional petrodiesel for a long time. The reason for this is because Biodiesel will break down the deposits of residue left there by petrodiesel. If the transition from Petrodiesel to Biodiesel happens too quickly this residue will clog your fuel filters.

Biodiesel can be made at Home.

A great advantage of Biodiesel is that anybody that wants to can make it on a small scale at their own home. All over the world people that got fed up with paying outrageous prices for petroluem diesel started their own biodiesel processing plants in their backyards and saved a fortune at the pump. If you are one of those people check out our How to make Biodiesel page.

Biodiesel can be made from Waste Products.

Making biodiesel from waste products like used cooking oil and grease is not only good for the environment but it also provides Restaurants and Fast Food outlets with a way to make a bit of extra money.

Biodiesel Byproducts.

In the Process of making biodiesel you get Glycerine as a byproducts. Before the glycerine can be sold or used it needs to be seperated from the methanol and lye that was used in the process. The methanol, once seperated can be used again. Glycerine has a wide variety of uses.They use it in everything from toothpaste to make-up. They use glycerine in the food industry as sweetners as fertilizer or in medical, pharmaceutical and personal care applications. If you don't want to sell it you can use it yourself to make a powerful degreaser or use it in a burner to heat your oil and become more energy efficient. You can also convert the Glycerine to Ethanol. The ethanol can then be used to make the biodiesel with instead of methanol which is a Fossil Fuel.

Biodiesel prolongs Engine Life.

Biodiesel is much Better for your Engine than conventional petrodiesel and can actually prolong the life of your engine. The Fuel injection equipment of an engine relies on the fuel for its lubrication and because of Biodiesel's better lubricating properties this reduces wear and increases engine life. Also an Engine that runs on Biodiesel is much cleaner because of the solvent effect of biodiesel and this as well reduces engine wear and increases engine life.