A Promising Feedstock
Algae have turned out to be the most promising feedstock for producing biodiesel among all other feedstock available and being experimented with. This renewable energy feedstock has drawn worldwide attention as an economic source for biodiesel that can substitute petroleum diesel as engine fuel, a necessity warranted by fast diminishing fossil fuel reserves and global oil crisis. The algae are more easily available and can produce a high yield of biodiesel. As algae can be grown in an atmosphere rich in carbon dioxide, it helps in reducing carbon dioxide in the air and consequently the greenhouse effect is reduced. Emission of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere from use of fossil fuel is the greatest contributor to global warming and the damaging changes in the earth’s climactic patterns.

Algae Cultivation
Sunlight and carbon dioxide are the two basic components required by the algal plants for their growth. Algae like the plants do photosynthesis from the solar energy. In this biochemical process, the solar energy gets converted to chemical energy. Chemical reactions like transformation of nitrogen to amino acids for protein synthesis and sugar formation are caused by the chemical energy derived from photosynthesis. Algae cultivation does not need arable land and can be done in open ponds which can supply the required inputs for algae to grow, viz. sunlight, carbon dioxide and water. What is needed is to increase artificially the supply of carbon dioxide as there is not enough of the gas in an open pond for quick growth of algae. Algae can also be grown in controlled environment where the supply of inputs can be regulated as per requirements. One example is the photobioreactors that artificially create a controlled environment not possible in an open pond. Cost of photobioreactors is high but the yield of algae is also much higher than in a pond. The cost is thus compensated in the long run. Another point of concern is the high protection required for growing the algae of the specific strains suitable for producing biodiesel. There remains a chance of the algae for biodiesel getting contaminated by other algae species. Even then harvesting algae in photobioreactors for getting biodiesel is a popular method of algae cultivation. In the photobioreactors, the algae can either be grown in batches or in a continuous manner. While a photobioreactor for continuous algal growth has to be always maintained, a batch photobioreactor is supplied with nutrients and seeds of algae only till the harvesting of the batch are complete. Photobioreactors can be of different types like plastic tubes, sleeves or bags, tanks and glass tubes.

Home-grown Algae
Specific strains of algae for biodiesel can be grown at home. The algae culture for this purpose has to be put in a container to be filled with bubble stones normally used in an aquarium. The circulation needed by the algae to grow comes from the bubble stones. Other inputs required are carbon dioxide, light and nutrients in the form of manure or fertilizer. Right temperature has to be maintained depending on the species of algae. The lighting sources can be natural sunlight, fluorescent lights or LED.

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Lesser Emission of Carbon dioxide
Fossil fuels are the largest contributors to emission of carbon dioxide in the air and the consequent global warming that is adversely impacting the climate of the earth. Compared to fossil fuels, production and use of biodiesel contributes far less carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. The actual extent of the release of this gas is however dependent on the process used to produce biodiesel and the effects considered for the calculation to determine the extent of release. Such calculations usually include the cost of growing the plant for biodiesel, transporting the feedstock to the production unit and the processing cost of converting the feedstock to biodiesel. Effects that are left out in the calculation are the cost incurred due to cultivating feedstock for biodiesel and not food crops, transportation cost for carrying biodiesel to the site of use from the factory, the extent of efficiency of biodiesel over the petroleum diesel and the benefits derived from the byproducts generated in the process of making biodiesel like glycerin. The carbon dioxide produced and released in the air from the tailpipe can be more in respect of biodiesel and this effect is also excluded from the calculation.

Less Pollution
As a substitute fuel for petroleum diesel in the USA, the requirements for effects on health have been met by biodiesel under the Clean Air Act of 1990. Presence of aromatic hydrocarbons has been reduced considerably in biodiesel. Benzopyrene has been reduced by 71% and benzofluoranthene by 56%. Performance of biodiesel in reducing tailpipe emission of particulates is better than diesel with low sulfur content and the extent of reduction may be as high as 20%. However this is applicable for vehicles using particulate filters. The particulate emissions during production of fossil fuels are higher by 50% compared to such emissions from the biodiesel production. Petroleum diesel has cetane less than 40 whereas it is higher in biodiesel. This factor enhances performance of the engine and reduces emission. Health hazards posed by biodiesel are insignificant compared to normal diesel. Effects on inhaling the gas or coming into skin contact with it are negligible though emission from biodiesel may cause eye irritation.

Non-toxic & Biodegradable
The easy biodegradability and non-toxicity have made biodiesel a fuel that causes much less pollution than the fossil fuels. Degradation rate of petroleum diesel is reduced by about 50% when blended with biodiesel due to co-metabolism. The degradation rate of biodiesel is in fact 5 times higher compared to normal diesel and same as dextrose control. When tested in soil, biodiesel has been found to degrade in soil at a rate two times faster than petroleum diesel. Unlike the normal diesel, biodiesel degrades completely and leaves no intermediates that degrade at a low rate. As regards the toxic effects, biodiesel has been found to have very low effects on the animals experimented with no report of animal mortality. While petroleum diesel with equal concentration also did not result in mortality, toxic effects were clearly visible on the animals in the form of discoloration of urine and loss of hair.

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Environ-friendly Fuel

Biodiesel is fast replacing petroleum diesel for use in car engines as it is found to be more friendly to the engines as well as to the environment as this biofuel emits less smoke and toxic gases in the air. 100% biodiesel or B100 can be used to run a vehicle. Alternatively this fuel can also be blended in any proportion with diesel in the diesel engines of modern automobiles. However gaskets and hoses made with natural rubber as found in automobiles made up to the early nineties tend to be degraded more by biodiesel than by petro-diesel because of certain solvent properties of biodiesel. Modern engines however use FKM in place of rubber as it does not react with biodiesel. The transition from petro-diesel to biodiesel may be made gradually since the latter is often found to disintegrate the residual petro-diesel deposit on the fuel tanks resulting in clogging of the fuel filters. A blend of the two types of fuels in appropriate proportions should be resorted to before switching over fully to biodiesel to reduce this possibility. A better option while using biodiesel is to replace the fuel filters on the auto engines and heaters.

Availability

Applications and productions of biodiesel are rising in Europe, USA and Canada. It is being used in mixture with diesel in automobiles and the growing demand for this fuel has made it available in the fueling stations in the above countries. Petroleum diesel is although cheaper at present than biodiesel, perishable nature of the former cannot keep its cost down in the long term. While man cannot restore the gradually depleting oil reserve, more and more agricultural subsidies will be made available to encourage production of biodiesel ultimately bringing down its price.

Uses

The debate continues over which one is a better car fuel- petroleum diesel or biodiesel. Producers of petroleum driven by their vested interests try to establish that petroleum diesel is better for car engines. The producers of biodiesel claim that pure biodiesel in fact increases the life of the engine by reducing its wear and tear. This is supported by independent bodies also. Fuel stations sell biodiesel produced with standards set by the authorities regulating production and use of the fuel and the consumers are satisfied with performance of this fuel. However the higher cost still encourages the consumers to opt for the petroleum diesel fuel for their car engines or blending small proportion of biodiesel with the traditional oil. Use of less than 5% of biodiesel in the blend was initially advised by car dealers like Volkswagen and DaimlerChrysler in the USA to secure lives of their car engines but the recommendation has since gone up to 20%. Even 2% addition of biodiesel in the mixture reduces the viscosity of petroleum diesel and increases the lubricity of the mixed fuel. The standard proportion of biodiesel now followed most widely is 5%. World’s first biodiesel train by Richard Branson, the famous British businessman, was run on 20% biodiesel. Branson’s first commercial aircraft to run on biodiesel in February, 2008 signaled the important role this fuel is going to play in future aviation.

Benefits of Using Biodiesel

Fossil fuels are the largest contributors to emission of carbon dioxide in the air and the consequent global warming that is adversely impacting the climate of the earth. Compared to fossil fuels, production and use of biodiesel contributes far less carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Read more about the benefits of using biodiesel

Biodiesel: Applications & Uses
Biodiesel is fast replacing petroleum diesel for use in car engines as it is found to be more friendly to the engines as well as to the environment as this biofuel emits less smoke and toxic gases in the air. Read more about biodiesel applications

Biodiesel From Algae
Algae have turned out to be the most promising feedstock for producing biodiesel among all other feedstock available and being experimented with. This renewable energy feedstock has drawn worldwide attention as an economic source for biodiesel that can substitute petroleum diesel as engine fuel, a necessity warranted by fast diminishing fossil fuel reserves and global oil crisis. Read more about biodiesel from algae

Biodiesel: Fundamentals

All kinds of vehicles, appliances, equipments, etc. need not necessarily run on diesel which is exhaustible and can run out. They can as well run on fuels called biodiesel made from vegetable oils or animal tallow. Any vegetable oil like Soya oil as also oils used for frying can go to make biodiesel. Read more about biodiesel fundamentals

Biodiesel: History Of Biodiesel
Long before the advent of diesel engine, studies on conversion of vegetable oil into biodiesel were conducted in 1853 by the two scientists Duffy and Patrick. It was only on August 10, 1893 that Rudolf Diesel ran the first diesel engine at Augsburg, Germany and the day is still commemorated as the “International Biodiesel Day” every year in honor of that landmark event. Read more about the history of biodiesel

Biodiesel: Sources for Production
Biodiesel can be produced from many types of vegetable oils. The ones most commonly used are soybean and rapeseed oils. In the United States, 90% of biodiesel is produced from soybean oil. It can also be produced from crops such as Jatropha, field penny cress, sunflower, palm oil, mustard, etc. Other sources for biodiesel include Waste Vegetable Oil, animal fats like lard, yellow grease and tallow. Biodiesel can also be made from the byproducts derived in the process of making Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil. Read more about the biodiesel sources for production

1853-1976
Long before the advent of diesel engine, studies on conversion of vegetable oil into biodiesel were conducted in 1853 by the two scientists Duffy and Patrick. It was only on August 10, 1893 that Rudolf Diesel ran the first diesel engine at Augsburg, Germany and the day is still commemorated as the “International Biodiesel Day” every year in honor of that landmark event. In 1900 at the World Fair in Paris, Otto Company of France demonstrated a diesel engine that ran on peanut oil devised by Rudolf Diesel which was a pioneering effort in the development of biodiesel although strictly speaking it was not exactly biodiesel but biofuel since transesterification, the process for converting vegetable oil into biodiesel was unknown at that time. Rudolf Diesel being a visionary realized the important role the fuel made from biomass was going to play in future for running engines. However the makers of biofuel from vegetable oil were finding the process expensive and the petroleum industry took this opportunity to aggressively market petroleum diesel which was cheaper. Petroleum oil compared to vegetable oil was found to be less gelling and the diesel engines were modified accordingly by the manufacturers during the twenties to enable use of petroleum diesel. Biomass fuels like biodiesel as a result got shelved for many years and the manufacturing facilities fell into decay. In spite of this slump, the IC engines continued to use vegetable oil as fuel during the period from the twenties and up to the fifties in countries like the UK, France, Germany, Brazil, China and Japan. The first production of actual biodiesel was by Chavanne, a scientist at the University of Brussels in Belgium who got a patent for it in 1937. This patent was for the process of transesterification or alcoholysis by which vegetable oil was converted for use as fuel. The process involved treating vegetable oils with ethanol and methanol to replace glycerol with alcohol after separating fatty acid from the glycerol. This production process continued till the mid seventies.

1977-1989
A modified process of transesterification to produce biodiesel using ethanol was patented in 1977 by Parente, a Brazilian scientist. This process has since been recognized and accepted by the automobile industry as the standardized one for making biodiesel internationally. Another product ‘bio-kerosene’ by Tecbio owned by Parente has also been patented and certified by Boeing and NASA for use as aviation biodiesel. In 1979 a process was developed in South Africa whereby sunflower oil was converted to biodiesel by the process of transesterification. However it was not before 1983 that biodiesel suitable for use in automobile engine was produced, tested and accepted worldwide. The first plant using rapeseed oil to produce biodiesel at industrial scale was set up in 1989 by the Austrian firm Gaskoks.

1990-Present
Biodiesel plants started to be set up in many European countries from the early nineties. Continuous researches are being conducted to increase the proportion of the fuel up to 50% in combination with petroleum diesel. Service stations in Europe are selling 100% biodiesel. Minnesota in 2005 became the first state in the USA to stipulate minimum 2% biodiesel to be mixed in diesel fuel.

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Oils
Biodiesel can be produced from many types of vegetable oils. The ones most commonly used are soybean and rapeseed oils. In the United States, 90% of biodiesel is produced from soybean oil. It can also be produced from crops such as Jatropha, field penny cress, sunflower, palm oil, mustard, etc. Other sources for biodiesel include Waste Vegetable Oil, animal fats like lard, yellow grease and tallow. Biodiesel can also be made from the byproducts derived in the process of making Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oil.

Another important economical source for production of biodiesel is algae. Algae for producing oil for biodiesel can be sourced cheaply from sewage wastes thus obviating the need for land which can be utilized for growing food. Many people consider waste vegetable oil to be the most ideal source for production of biodiesel. But the volume of biodiesel required to be produced to meet the demands of the transportation and household sectors is too large to be met with the inadequate supply of waste vegetable oil. Similarly inadequate is the supply of animal fat to produce biodiesel. Use of petroleum diesel can however be reduced to some extent by using discarded animal fat to produce biodiesel. Discarded chicken fat that can be procured from local poultry firms can be a viable source for biodiesel. Around 3 million gallons of biodiesel can be manufactured from nearly one billion kg of chicken fat and this source is utilized by some plants in USA

Not Enough to Replace Fossil Fuel
To produce soybean and animal fat in a scale than can produce enough biodiesel to substitute petroleum diesel as fuel is practically not possible. The enormous quantity of vegetable oils required to be produced towards making biodiesel would need very large scale farming with use of pesticides and fertilizers. People all over the world might object to such large scale diversion of agricultural land for producing vegetable oilseeds instead of food cultivation. As per the estimates of the Energy Information Administration of the US Department of Energy, consumption of diesel as engine and heating fuel is around 160 million tonnes in USA. Production of vegetable oils and animal fat in the country is estimated to be around 11 million tonnes and 5.3 million tonnes respectively that indicate the inadequacy of the production of these substances to produce biodiesel in sufficient volume to replace petroleum diesel.

From Algae
To produce biodiesel from soybean oil to meet the estimated consumption in USA of 160 million tonnes of fuel would require the total cultivable land of the country. This impractical prospect can be eliminated by the alternative option of using algae from sewage wastes that is economical and does not require much land. According to the estimate of the Department of Energy, to meet this fuel need, only 15000 square miles of land is required for growing algae. Algae can be grown in arid lands including in desert and marine conditions and can yield more oil for biodiesel than other plants. The energy yielded by algae per acre is estimated to be 30 times more than crops grown on land like soybean.

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Vegetables for Vehicles
All kinds of vehicles, appliances, equipments, etc. need not necessarily run on diesel which is exhaustible and can run out. They can as well run on fuels called biodiesel made from vegetable oils or animal tallow. Any vegetable oil like Soya oil as also oils used for frying can go to make biodiesel. In diesel engines, one can either use biodiesel fully replacing diesel or combination of diesel and biodiesel in any proportion. The fuel tank can be filled with just diesel, just biodiesel or diesel-biodiesel at any ratio.

Why Biodiesel?
Demand for fuels like diesel or petroleum is so overwhelming that most of the countries have to import them. On the other hand, biodiesel can easily be manufactured indigenously. Thus precious dollars which would otherwise have gone to a foreign country can be saved and dependence on them for fuels reduced. While biodiesel manufacturing would create job within the country, reduction of import would strengthen the balance of trade. Isn’t that great? Apart from these economic considerations, the other weighing factor is that the oil is not going to last forever. Oil is non-renewable and also a pollutant. Biodiesel is ever renewable and without any toxic effects. As it is made from vegetable oil, it is no pollutant of air. We all know how rampant use of carbon fossil fuels is contributing to global warming and climatic change. The air is foul with carbon emissions. With biodiesel which is almost free from carbon, emissions warming the globe are almost gone and we can take a deep breath in a cleaner air. The wear and tear of automobile engines is far less when diesel is replaced by biodiesel. Even a small addition of biodiesel to the diesel increases the lubrication which means longer engine life. Less noise and less smoke- that’s what clinches the deal for biodiesel. Anyone who has abhorred the belching smoke and the engine noise of a diesel run automobile would heartily welcome the soothing biodiesel.

Minuses
Biodiesel is also not without its disadvantages. In spite of steadily rising availability, biodiesel is still to be available readily across the country. The consumption for biodiesel is increasing by leaps and bounds (gone up 5 times in 5 years between 2001 and 2006) and the indigenous production can hardly keep pace with this growth in consumption. Using biodiesel in fuel tanks hitherto using diesel clogs the fuel filter by peeling off the accumulated diesel on the tank wall. This may be a problem for the fuel injectors. Biodiesel is more gelling than diesel and at a temperature below 32 degrees Fahrenheit may get a little sticky. The problem can be overcome by keeping the proportion of biodiesel to 20% and mixing the fuel with 80% diesel. This combination is most widely used having a gel point of 15 degrees Fahrenheit. In extreme cold climates, additives like kerosene in the diesel-biodiesel mixture can further bring down the gel point. While biodiesel poses no problems for new cars, rubbers used in fuel lines of old cars may get eroded with use of biodiesel. The NOx emissions from biodiesel cause smog but reductions of greenhouse gases far outweigh this small disadvantage.

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