BIOFUELS: Choose Wisely
All Biofuel Crops are Not Created Equal
Many crops are used to make biodiesel. The oil in their seeds is pressed out, filtered and converted to fuel using a chemical process. Though different crops can become biodiesel through the same process, the resulting fuel can vary greatly in its ability to produce power.
First, there’s the issue of yield. The amount of vegetable oil available in an acre of crops can vary widely, from 18 gallons per acre for corn to 635 gallons for oil palm [source: Journey to Forever]. And, like trying to grow oranges in Alaska, some climate regions will never be suitable for a high-yield crop that could produce economically viable biodiesel [source: Burpee], while regions well suited to high-yield biodiesel crops risk deforestation, monocropping and overplanting.
Second, the oil these plants produce is not equal. Think about the oils in your kitchen; while the olive oil in the cupboard is easy to pour, the lard and vegetable shortening have a paste-like consistency. These differences in state at a given temperature come from basic molecular makeup. The molecular bonds in oils low in saturated fats, which stay liquid at lower temperatures, vary from those high in saturated fats, which often form solids in average temperature ranges.
This difference has an effect on an oil’s viability as fuel. One obvious consideration is the gel, or clouding, point; a fuel that turns solid well above water’s freezing point would not be very useful in a cold location, for example. Consequently, it makes sense to look for an unsaturated oil as a biofuel source.
But there’s another complication that arises with this selection. Many unsaturated oils have undesirable burn characteristics — such as leaving a gummy residue in an engine. Hydrogenating, or treating the oil with hydrogen, can mitigate this problem, but increased processing means increased cost [source: Journey to Forever].
Upcoming articles discuss ‘monocropping’ or ‘monoculture’ in more detail.
Alkane thanks Matt Cunningham, writing for http://auto.howstuffworks.com/ and Greenfacts.org for the content of this article.
Alkane Truck Company is currently raising capital on the crowdfunding platform StartEngine. Find out more here: https://www.startengine.com/startup/alkane
