Community BioFuels, LLC

The Economics of Biodiesel

Is it a viable alternative?
What is Biodiesel
Biodiesel is a domestically
produced, renewable fuel that can
be manufactured from vegetable
oils, animal fats, or recycled
restaurant greases.
Biodiesel is safe, biodegradable,
and reduces serious air pollutants
such as particulates, carbon
monoxide, hydrocarbons, and air
toxins.
Straight, or blended with
petroleum diesel, biodiesel can be
used in unmodified diesel engines.
Rudolph Diesel, 1912
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.
History
In 1898, when Rudol ph Di esel fi rst demonstrated hi s
compression i gni ti on engi ne at the Worl d's
Exhi bi tion i n Pari s, he used peanut oi l - the ori gi nal
bi odi esel. Diesel believed biomass fuel to be viable
alternative to the resource consuming steam engine.
Vegetable oils were used in diesel engines until the
1920's when an alteration was made to the engine,
enabling it to use a residue of petroleum - what is now
known as diesel #2.
Transesterification of vegetable oils has been in use
since the mid-1800's. More than likely, it was originally
used to distill out the glycerin used for making soap. The
"by-products" of this process are methyl and ethyl esters.
Biodiesel is composed of these esters.
Although the diesel engine gained worldwide acceptance,
biodiesel did not. With superior price, availability, and
government subsidies, petroleum diesel quickly became
the fuel of choice for the diesel engine.
Vegetable Oil Molecule
Triglyceride
3 Fatty acids (methyl
esters)
1 Glycerol
What is Biodiesel?
Chemi cal l y, bi odi esel mol ecul es are mono-al kyl esters
produced usual l y from tri gl yceri de esters
Fatty Acid
Alcohol
Glycerin
Vegetabl e Oi l Bi odi esel
FA
FA
FA
FA
How do you make it?
Virgin vegetable oil or waste oil is filtered and
then heated to remove water.
Top portion of oil is decanted into processor
Catalyst (lye) and Methanol are added
The mixture is stirred and then allowed to
settle
Biodiesel is drawn off of the top and glycerin is
removed from the bottom
The Methanol is reclaimed
BIODIESEL: ENVIRONMENT and EMISSIONS
Emissions(compared with diesel) B100 B20
Carbon Monoxide -43% -13%
Hydrocarbons -56 -11
Particulates -55 -18
Nitrus Oxides +6 +1
Air Toxics -60-90 -12-20
Cancer Risk -94 -27
Mutagenicity -80-90 -20

Bi odi esel contai ns no sul fur
Only fuel to pass EPA Clean Air Act
A Comprehensive Analysis of Biodiesel
Impacts on Exhaust Emissions
Based on this analysis, we could reasonably conclude that total toxics
are reduced when biodiesel is added to conventional diesel fuel.
Life Cycle Analysis
From an Energy input perspective these
fuels return these amounts of energy
Petroleum Diesel: 90%
Ethanol: 100% 160%
Biodiesel: 280% - 350%
Feedstock's
Oil Palm African palm
Palm oil and palm kernel oil
Extracted from fleshy outside
Coconut South America and tropical areas
Coconut meat is peeled from the husk, dried in the sun, and pressed
Jatropha Americas
A bush that produces a seed
Seed is crushed for oil
Rapeseed/ Canola Canada, Germany, Russia colder regions
Yellow flowering oil crop
Peanut South America warm
Sandy soil
Sunflower North America
Squeezed from seeds
Safflower India, Egypt, and Persia
Thistle-like plant
Yellow/orange flower
Soybean East Asia and USA
High protein bean
Hemp Russia, China, and Asia
Illegal to grow in USA
Corn Americas
Use the oil and grain for food
Algae NREL have cultivated algae to produce oil
Could provide enough oil to meet all of the diesel fuel needs of the US
Source of biodiesel fuel from plants or animals
Net Energy Balance of Corn Ethanol
and Soybean Biodiesel
Environmental effects
Fertilizer use Pesticide application
Environmental effects of ethanol and biodiesel
Greenhouse gases
reduced by both
relative to
gasoline and
diesel
combustion
Current and future biofuels
Performance Analysis
Biodiesel is interchangeable with #2 fuel
in vehicle, generators, home heating
Slightly less BTU but higher Cetane
Same performance, same mileage
Ethanol vehicle needs advanced
electronics to optimize electronic ignition
on the fly
Significantly less BTUs. (70%) Need to
burn 30% more fuel to travel same distance
Worse performance, worse mileage
Cold Weather Issues
Food Versus Fuel
In the US the feedstock competes with the
food chain
Most biodiesel comes from soybean
Most ethanol comes from corn
Both biofuels are heavily subsidized and
with out the subsidies and tax credits
would not be economically viable they
currently arent!
Grease Cars
Diesel vehicles are modified by adding
additional fuel components to all waste
vegetable oil (WVO) to be used.
The WVO needs to be heated to 160
degrees before it can be used, normally
by circulating the engine coolant through
a second fuel tank.
Running on Grease
Bob Morabito, Westchester Countys recycling guru explained; the county is retrofitting 25
additional vehicles to run on vegetable oil. He said, At the end of the year, we accumulate
50,000 gallons of oil, which will now provide a free, clean alternative to diesel fuel.
The countys new Veggie Van
garishly green on the outside and
figuratively green all over. Powered by
used vegetable oil, the van is the
countys latest effort to use and promote
technologies that dont contribute to
global warming and do help decrease
the nations dependency on foreign oil.
To accomplish the transformation, the
county Department of Public Works
teamed up with V.O.Tech,
Diesel/Veggie Oil Fueling Station
Perhaps the car of the future?
Or perhaps
Electric cars
Hybrid
Gasoline Electric
Diesel Electric
Electric w/ generator
Alternative Fuels
E85 Ethanol (85%) and Gasoline (15%)
M85 Methanol (85%) and Gasoline (15%)
CNG/LPG
The Carbon Cycle
Contact Information
J erry Robock
Community Biofuels
jrobock@communitybiofuels.com
Is Biodiesel a Solution?
To what?