NSAP & Chevy_Rules: Alternative Fuels

[nsap]

NSAP & Chevy_Rules: Alternative Fuels, Which is for us?
By: Chevy_Rules and NSAP
June 30,2006
www.gminsidenews.com

Chevy_Rules Take on BioDiesel:


There are many alternative fuel choices. Ranging from Ethanol and BioDiesel to hydrogen and electricity. Obviously the ideal fuel is hydrogen and electricity. But, the technology that would make those fuels practical has not matured enough yet. As to produce hydrogen, the process still requires fossil fuels. So with todays technology what fuel is the best alternative until hydrogen becomes practical? My opinion is BioDiesel is the best alternative fuel.

BioDiesel refers to a Diesel equivalent using processed fuel from biological sources. BioDiesel is made of waste vegetable oil( WVO), virgin oil feedstock like soybeans and rapeseed, and animal fats. BioDiesel can be transported using our current infrastructure. BioDiesel can be made at home with the proper equipment and chemicals that would purify the oils so it could be put into a Diesel engine. BioDiesel is non toxic.

Today, BioDiesel is used only in blends with regular fossil fuel based Diesel. To measure BioDiesel companies use B20(made up number) indicating the fuel is 20% BioDiesel like E85 showing the fuel is blended with 85% Ethanol. Diesel engines do have the capability to run on B100 BioDiesel. BioDiesel does degrade natural rubber hoses and gaskets. The natural rubber hoses and gaskets are found on vehicle produced before 1992. After 1992, Diesel engines now use Viton, which is nonreactive to BioDiesel. We don’t know how many pre-viton vehicles are out there still with natural rubber as the parts are replaced with Viton material parts. BioDiesel has a flash point of ~150 Degrees C. Making it relatively non-flammable.

BioDiesel has positive effects on the engine. BioDiesel cleans the engine and improves engine life. It removes residue left by regular Diesel from the fuel injectors. Thus, improving fuel injector life. You want a slow transition as it can clog filters. You would want to change the filters after 600-800 after switching to a BioDiesel blend. BioDiesel has a gelling point of 40 degrees F. So far there is no products that can lower the gelling point of BioDiesel. So for winter blends, you would have to blend BioDiesel with kerosine and low sulfur Diesel. Or we could equip our Diesel trucks with a heated fuel tank so the B100 BioDiesel doesn’t gel. You can not have water contamination. As it reduces the heat of combustion of the bulk fuel. That results in more smoke, harder starting, and less power. Or with heated fuel tanks, people would have a year round microbe problem.

There are many materials that can be used to make BioDiesel. There are waste vegetable oil(WVO), plants, and animal fats. Currently, the U.S restaurants produce 300 million gallons a year of WVO. There are also animal fats that can be used to make BioDiesel. Then there are plants. Photosynthesis creates a chemical energy which BioDiesel uses. Soybeans, rapeseed, mustard, palm oil, algae, and jatropha are plants that can be used to produce BioDiesel. Using plants makes BioDiesel a true renewable fuel. Unfortunately, there is not enough materials to make enough BioDiesel to please the demand consumers put on the fuel industry.

BioDiesel is healthy for the environment and humans. BioDiesel produces significantly less emissions then Diesel. BioDiesel reduces Carbon Monoxide emissions by 50% and Carbon Dioxide by 78%. BioDiesel does produce more Nitrogen oxide then regular Diesel. But, the increase can be reduced and often eliminated by the use of catalytic converters and a properly designed and tuned engine. BioDiesel reduces the cancer risks by 94%! BioDiesel is the only alternative fuel that passes the health effects testing requirements in the Clean Air Act of 1990.

BioDiesel is a very capable alternative fuel. Right now it out competes solar cells with an electric drivetrain in cost and ease of deployment. Right now there is no formal studies showing the long term effect of pure B100 BioDiesel on unmodified Diesel engines. The benefits of BioDiesel outweighs the negatives of BioDiesel making it the best alternative fuel until Hydrogen becomes practical.


My Take On Ethanol/Butanol:

It’s a subject that is debated everywhere by regular people and even analysts; what fuel is going to be our source for energy in the future? With the recent influx of E85 vehicles or vehicles that run on 85% Ethanol, 15% petrol from American manufacturers Ford and General Motors; many believe that maybe Ethanol is our future fuel.

Most of the big automotive companies keep saying that Hydrogen fuel-cell cars are the next big thing. Well, that's nice and all, but we've been hearing about this for years and little action has taken place. The problem with Hydrogen is that it will be a rather extensive overhaul of our vehicles, fuel methods, and distribution network. That's where one of the biggest benefits of Ethanol comes in; it requires little changes to our vehicles, fueling, and distribution networks. Other than having fuel line alter in vehicles so that the Ethanol doesn't eat through them, our vehicles are ready for the fuel now.

I'm going to sort of switch things around in my article. Initially was going to write about how I think Ethanol is the best alternative fuel source, but while researching Ethanol I discovered Butanol. Butanol, like Ethanol is a four-carbon alcohol, but is; more flexible, cheaper, more efficient, and more environmentally friendly than normal Ethanol.

Butanol isn’t completely unknown. It’s used in paint thinner, brake fluid and hydraulic fluid. It is reported to have a yield of about 104,800 BTU per gallon when it’s burned. Comparing those numbers with those of straight gasoline, the Butanol has about a 10% loss in fuel economy, but Butanol has a 25% higher octane rating. This would allow a gasoline engine to get an increase of about 25% in power and 10% or more mileage than gasoline. The best part about switching to Butanol; it requires NO engine or vehicle modifications.

When I started to research Butanol, I stumbled upon this website (www.Butanol.com). The site talks about driving across the United States in a 1992 Buick Park Avenue running only on Butanol; with zero modifications to the original car. They claim that the Park Avenue gets around 22 miles per-gallon on the highway when running on straight gasoline, but got 24 miles per-gallon when running on all Butanol; a 9% increase in fuel economy. By running on the Butanol the car had a 95% reduction of Hydrocarbons and Carbon monoxide was reduced to .01%. Oxides of Nitrogen was reduced by 37%. Like Ethanol, Butanol is made from corn or several other things that grow.

Is Ethanol our answer to cure our dependence on foreign oil? Is Butanol? BioDiesel? Hydrogen? I’m not the one to answer that. We can all discuss what we think is the answer, but in the end it’s going to be the corporations that decide.

[ChevyRules]

BioDiesel produces significantly less emissions then BioDiesel.

I meant, BioDiesel produces significantly less emissions then Diesel. Sorry for the mix up. If a mod can change that. Thx.

[jknudson98]

That's some nice info on butanol, but considering the source, I'm skeptical. If true, why is there so much publicity for Ethanol, and virtually nil for butanol???

[GReekBoy]

Originally Posted by jknudson98

That's some nice info on butanol, but considering the source, I'm skeptical. If true, why is there so much publicity for Ethanol, and virtually nil for butanol???

im thinking mainly because thats how brazil is running, people just look to them as an example.

[motorman]

Originally Posted by GReekBoy

im thinking mainly because thats how brazil is running, people just look to them as an example.

what works in brazil will never work here because every man women and child over the age of 16 does not own or drive a car like here in the USA. also i bet there are very few people in brazil that have 2 to 4 cars in their garage. it would take one he-l of a lot of alternet fuels to run this country

[Cortazzo]

I just read that Butanol.com page, and it sounds like it's almost too good to be true. But the production process that makes Butanol an economical source of bioenergy is just in its infancy. Hopefully this will get some attention and we can use it as an additive to start to provide a stable demand, then maybe we can have 100% butanol. I want to find a few gallons and see what the octane boost will do in my car :-D

[gerardo_zg]

. Butanol, like Ethanol is a four-carbon alcohol,

Nope, Ethanol has two carbon atoms per molecule. Gasoline has six.

[TaHoE]

Originally Posted by gerardo_zg

Nope, Ethanol has two carbon atoms per molecule. Gasoline has six.

Bingo. I really like the idea behind Butanol, it honestly seems much superior to ethanol.

[racy]

Originally Posted by jknudson98

That's some nice info on butanol, but considering the source, I'm skeptical. If true, why is there so much publicity for Ethanol, and virtually nil for butanol???

Because until recently, butanol was more expensive to produce that Ethanol. Furthermore, until recently, it was produced from petroleum.

Only now have we been able to cheaply produce it from bio material at a cost that is on par with or less than ethanol. The next main test is to see if it can be scaled...which is what a few people are doing.

[macphisto]

Originally Posted by jknudson98

That's some nice info on butanol, but considering the source, I'm skeptical. If true, why is there so much publicity for Ethanol, and virtually nil for butanol???

Because ethanol is produced here off heavily subsidized corn. The Gov't subsidizes ethanol production from corn just as it subsidizes corn growth.

Butanol is not subsidized presently as it's not made out of agricultural growth. Butanol can be made with fossil fuel but new methods have arised for fermenting it from biowaste and it's easier to get out of our waste than ethanol is.

I've been on Butanol for the past couple months, NSAP. Glad to see you bring it up too. Butanol is the perfect alternative fuel for the modern era. With enough investment it could seriously challenge gasoline. It can run in normal cars AND provide a fuel economy boost and a power boost. It also burns so cleanly that it may allow for legal removal of the catalytic converter which would further increase power and fuel economy due to relieved backpressure.

But butanol is not subsidized so it's not as readily available. I think it'd be wise for GM to help finance butanol research and production. For one, if butanol could be produced en masse and distributed then GM would stand to make a fortune with a stake in sales. GM would also be heralded for really putting their money where their mouth is.

Butanol would mean hybrids would go out the door (perhaps a reason why GM and others aren't too keen - lots of investment in hybrid development). It also would allow them to not rush the fuel cell. As butanol's market share grew it would also affect politics and take a big leveraging chip away from the middle eastern countries and other like Venezuala.

[Proetus]

DuPont and BP Announce Partnership to Develop Advanced Biofuels

June 20, 2006 - DuPont and BP today announced the creation of a partnership to develop, produce and market a next generation of biofuels to help meet increasing global demand for renewable transportation fuels.

The first product to market will be biobutanol, which is targeted for introduction in 2007 in the United Kingdom as a gasoline bio-component. DuPont and BP are working with British Sugar, a subsidiary of Associated British Foods plc, to convert the country's first ethanol fermentation facility to produce biobutanol. Additional global capacity will be introduced as market conditions dictate. A feasibility study in conjunction with British Sugar is already under way to examine the possibility of constructing larger facilities in the UK.

Biobutanol has low vapor pressure and tolerance to water contamination in gasoline blends, facilitating its use in existing gasoline supply and distribution channels. It has the potential to be blended into gasoline at higher concentrations than existing biofuels without the need to retrofit vehicles and it offers better fuel economy than gasoline-ethanol blends, improving a car's fuel efficiency and mileage.

[asim]

I think Biodiesel AND Ethanol can be the future of this country, and each of them SHOULD be the future. We just can't use fossil fuels forever.

[camaro chris]

Originally Posted by asim

I think Biodiesel AND Ethanol can be the future of this country, and each of them SHOULD be the future. We just can't use fossil fuels forever.

except that there really are no major advantages to ethanol. its more expensive. it takes alot of energy to produce and cars get worse fuel milage from it. its plus sides are that it gives more power and is cleaner. i say ditch it and go with biodiesel only.

[awalbert88]

Originally Posted by camaro chris

except that there really are no major advantages to ethanol. its more expensive. it takes alot of energy to produce and cars get worse fuel milage from it. its plus sides are that it gives more power and is cleaner. i say ditch it and go with biodiesel only.

We can't make enough to power the whole country. Same for ethanol. Butanol is still a ways off from being available in large enough quantities to be useful, but between the three of them a dent can be made in our consumption of oil. That gives time for hydrogen infrastructure to mature and once the oil starts to dry up, we'll be able to phase it out. There are two hydrogen options: fuel cells and electric motors, and hydrogen combustion. Ford and BMW both developed working hydrogen ICEs, but they suffer from substantial power loss. Can hydrogen be blended with another fuel for this purpose? One big advantage to blending ethanol into gasoline (even at E10 levels) is that to achieve the same octane rating you need a lower octane of gasoline (since the ethanol has a 115 rating by itself). This allows for some savings on the refining side, and potentially less waste.

[racy]

NSAP: This is a good article yet only touches the tip of the iceberg. You ought to do a few installments in a series. There is a lot of emerging technology right now, and what looked like the dominant technology/paradigm last week was supplanted by something new this week.

All the talk about a hydrogen economy went from boom to bust in less than a year when gas hit $3.00/gallon and stayed there for months on end. Suddenly, a more readily available technology, ethanol, became the talk of the town.

But while ethanol is already here, its technological and logistical hurdles prevent it from becomming a slam paradigm shift.

Enter butanol. It can be run in any modern car without any changes - thus addressing the immediate issue of 250,000,000 cars presently on the road today...which neither ethanol nor hydrogen can address.

It is a very interesting time indeed, as our energy sector is going through a major overhaul - and that affects every aspect of life as we know it in the Northwestern hemishpere.

And then there's the other wildcard in the mix: BIG OIL. We can't count them out. Many industry analysts are starting to predict that the price/barrel will drop down to the $40s within the next 18-24 months. As Ethanol/butanol catch on, BIG OIL will definately be aware of lost revenue - no matter how small the percentage it may be.

The only thing we know for sure is that the next three years will be a wild ride, and what we predict today will probably be the furthest from actuality by then.

For every million dollars of investment capital being put into ethanol, there is 10 million being put into oil sands and shale oil. Canada is expecting to be able to put out 10 million bpd within years....and remember, Canada has 175 Billion Barrels of proven reserve - second only to Saudi Arabia. Big players in the shale industry, although it is still premature (Shell, Chevron and now Raytheon) are seeing dollar signs in Utah and Colorado - especially since oil shale is indisputably a better source than oil sands for synthetic oil extraction.

Granted, we are at least three years away from any significant shale oil extraction, but the money is being sunk into the grounds as we speak.

It is a very real possibility that just as ethanol/biodiesel/butanol start to get a firm foundation in the minds of America, the oil companies will orchestrate a sustained $30/barrel price for oil - thus stopping the alternative in their tracks.

Oil companies rake in trillions per year...they'll do whatever they can to continue that revenue stream.

Keep up the good investigation and commentary. It provides a fresh break from the day-2-day GM news, which is mostly gloomy.