veg oil price

[kulas44]

I can get used, clean, filtered, (2 micron) cooking oil delivered for $1.20 per gallon if I buy 5000 gallons. Untaxed diesel was 2.71 last week.

[sdowney717]

I heard truckers like some biodiesel mixed in as it seriously improves injector and pump lubrication extending their life.
Are you concerned at all about coking issues using the oil straight SVO as opposed to processing it into biodiesel?
I think you said you would run these on detroit diesels (2 cycle?), how does SVO affect the cylinder ports?

[Alan D. Hyde]

IF you pick it up, some restaurants will PAY you to take it away...

Alan

[Gary E]

Several good sites for info...

http://www.boulderbiodiesel.com/john/SVO/index.jsp

http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_make.html

http://www.sustainablebusiness.com/features/feature_template.cfm?ID=915

A few smips from that last one...


It may take a while before engine manufacturers are comfortable with the use of biodiesel. Currently. Ford, Dodge and Volkswagen all void warranties if biodiesel is used. Volkswagen, however, sells a "biodiesel kit" that includes a few modifications suggested if biodiesel is used. Biodiesel has a somewhat lower energy density and more oxygen than petroleum diesel.

Most biodiesel today is mixed with petroleum diesel. The most common mixture is B20, a mix of 20% biodiesel and 80% petroleum diesel. B100 (100% biodiesel) is being used successfully by some but is not as widely recommended or used, due to concerns about cold-weather performance, equipment compatibility, and cost.

Another important question is the amount of energy it takes to produce and transport it. Ethanol, for example, has been criticized because it takes almost as much energy to produce as is contained in the end-product fuel. The most recent USDA data shows for every unit of fossil-fuel energy used in ethanol production, 1.34 units of ethanol are produced.

With virgin biodiesel made from soybeans, the energy balance is far better. A 1998 report sponsored by the US DOE and USDA found that for every unit of fossil-fuel energy consumed in biodiesel production, 3.2 units of biodiesel are produced. That a 220% net energy gain. Petroleum fuels have a negative energy balance ( a net energy loss) because it takes energy to extract, process and transport that fuel.

Biodiesel as Transportation Fuel
Biodiesel can substitute for petroleum in any vehicle designed to operate on diesel fuel. In fact, when Dr. Rudolf Diesel first developed the diesel engine in 1895, he intended that it would be operated on vegetable oils in addition to distillate oil. At the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris, he demonstrated his new engine using peanut oil, and in 1912 he said, portentously, that "the use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today. but such oils may become in the course of time as important as petroleum and the coal tar products of the present time."

Biodiesel can be used in cars, light and heavy trucks, with few or no modifications. Studies show that a 20% blend can be burned in any diesel engine with no modifications at all. At a higher concentration, the more aggressive solvents in biodiesel may degrade certain rubber parts. Biodiesel experts recommend replacing certain hoses, for example with products that resist degradation.

Because biodiesel is a better solvent than petroleum, it is likely to dissolve crud that's been accumulating in the fuel tank. As a result, the fuel filter will probably need to be changed shortly after making the switch.
The most significant limitation as a transportation fuel is its cold-weather performance. It can gel at temperatures below 32 degrees F and must be mixed with petroleum diesel, kerosene or special additives in cold weather. For this reason ( and due to cost), most users of biodiesel as a transportation fuel use a relatively modest B20 blend - this is what I'm using in my VW Passat.

According to Dr. Tyson at NREL, gelling problems were experienced with a B35 blend. "We've seen no problems with B20," she says. Currently, more than 200 vehicle fleets nationwide operate on a biodiesel blend - most with B20, some with lower percentages, B10 or B5.

Using biodiesel instead of petroleum diesel costs the company roughly $200,000-300,000 more per year. When asked how he can justify that cost economically, he said he can't. "It's just the right thing to do," he says.
Off-Road Fuel for Heavy Equipment
The benefits are even greater for off-road equipment. Off-road diesel fuel does not have to meet federal low-sulfur standards (500 ppm) and sulfur levels of 2000-3000 ppm are typical. High sulfur petroleum is widely used on thousands of job sites in everything from bulldozers and excavators to cranes and compressors.

Rockland Materials has been operating loaders, excavators, rock-crushers, mining equipment, and generators on B100 without incident. And it hasn't affected equipment warrantees either. "We have the blessings from Caterpillar and Cummins to do that," Goodman says.

The Warwick, Rhode Island School District has been testing various mixes of biodiesel as a heating fuel for the past two heating seasons. Bob Cerio, energy manager for the school system, calls it "the best thing since sliced bread." Following a successful first season of biodiesel use, Cerio began using B20 in all the boilers and he's had no problems at all. His testing shows a reduction in all pollutants, including NOx.

Using biodiesel has increased fuel costs for the Warwick School District. The biodiesel is delivered as B100 and mixed in their tanks. cost of the B100 ranges from $1.30-$1.76 per gallon. This season, he guesses the cost premium will be about 10 cents a gallon. The higher price hasn't been an obstacle so far. "Our school district is willing to spend extra money to get a cleaner fuel that will expose our children to less pollution."

[kulas44]

the old detroits don't have injector pumps, they use unit injectors driven by the camshaft and a rocker arm. I will be useing a propane injector to introduce a small amount of propane when cruiseing, this really helps the fuel burn more completely, reducing deposits to almost nothing. An occasional water injection into the intake air for a few hours seems to also help clean the pistons and injector tips. Detroits use the fuel to help cool the head by running it through galleries and around the injectors, they move a tremendous amount of fuel and I have a small return tank that is also the engine supply tank, keeping the fuel warm is not a problem. Now I need to find some really good bladder tanks.

[sdowney717]

For years they have had to pay someone to haul away used cooking oils and fats to the landfills.
Considering that with only a little extra effort we can reuse what is a waste product, reduce arab oil dependance, reduce air polution, reduce costs, increase engine life, what's not to like?
I do wonder though if recycling used cooking oil could ever fill a significant part of what we need to fuel diesels nationally.
5 years ago GM choose not to build a hybrid that would get 80 MPG and left it to the Japanese to take the lead with hybrids. Now they are talking about PHEV, plug in hybrid electric vehicles that can double this 80 to 160 MPG. And Toyota may be the one to lead here.

http://www.hybridcars.com/plugin-hybrids.html

http://www.popularmechanics.com/automotive/concept_cars/1267946.html

[WX]

I wish my car would run on it, petrol here is around $6.50 a gallon.