You can double your milage AND horsepower

[Defective]

Trucks! ran an episode on bio-diesel fueled engines a while back when Tracey was hosting. I don't remember what truck they used, seems like a dodge, but they named it "Tire Fryer" or something like that.

I missed the mythbusters where they dumped raw waste oil into the unmodified vehicle. On Trucks!, they walked you through how to make it with one of their sponsers kits. It was a prebuilt mini "refinery" that made the process more automated and less messy. You do need to put in an additive to bring the oil back up to speed.

In northern climates, biodiesel is highly suspectable to gelling. A heated gas tank and fuel lines may be necessary. I think I read something a while back that vehicles that are converted generally also burn regular diesel to get started and warmed up first, then switch over to the bio.

 

[AllanD]

I'm gonna say bullshit too.

Not about the "race" because I didn't even watch the video

About a diesel running on used cooking oil running "smoother"

It's a diesel, it runs like a diesel.
The "slipperyness" of the fuel is IRRELEVANT!

For the others who keep talking and proving their ignorance
It isn't "biodiesel", it's "Waste Vegetible Oil" from which Biodiesel
CAN be made, but to make biodiesel from Vegetable oil (waste or fresh)
requires caustic and ALCOHOL, and it isn't THAT efficient a process.
(Running an engine in "SVO (straight vegetible oil) or WVO" cuts out a lot of steps and
eliminates hazardous byproducts)

But engines running on Bio, WVO or SVO, DO NOT make more power,
they usually make LESS power, and they almost ALWAYS run slightly
"dirtier", because the higher viscosity oil doesn't atomize as easily
and so doesn't burn as completely.

Hyperbole and sensationalism generally piss me off
People repeating hyperbole and sensationalism
(other than as a vehicle for delivery of deserved sarchasm)
piss me off even more.

Bio Diesel and even Vegetable oil is NOT an economically viable alternative to dino oil, simply because there is not and NEVER will be enough of it.
People have NO CLUE how many acres of oil seed crops must be
grown simply to cover the fuel needs of the tractor that plows the fields!

And after you deal with that the tractor needs MORE fuel to harvest the crop!

And a TRUCK needs fuel to transport it to the processing plant.

es, they can come out ahead, but when you start counting ALL the thirsty trucks and figuiring out how many acres are required to grow enough oil to run them ALL you realize you come up short, WAY short.


AD

 

[exbass94]

they walked you through how to make it with one of their sponsers kits. It was a prebuilt mini "refinery" that made the process more automated and less messy. You do need to put in an additive to bring the oil back up to speed.

http://www.freedomfuelamerica.com/

 

[Stumpy]

I don't doubt that it could have been set up, or maybe the driver of the Lambo jsut sucked THAT badly...

If you look closely in the video it is a Lamborghini Gallardo... which means it has a V-10. It does a 1/4 in around 12 seconds.

A biodiesel impala that is set up with 400hp could easily beat it.

Were comparing apples and oranges really, the lambo isn't made to go fast in a straight line.

 

[Ranger5.0]

AllenD-interesting opinions and facts you have there. So, if Bio-diesel is not going to be a solouting to dwindeling oil reserves, what is the alternative. Ones country can only go to war over oil so many times. in the end, the oil will be gone

 

[Hahnsb2]

It's very damn possible for a duramax impala to make 400+hp and and get in the low 20mpgs, and beat a lambo, lambos aren't 1/4 mile cars. Hell there's plenty of 600-700hp diesel trucks getting 20mpg freeway.

 

[ngzcaz]

I think some of you guys are missing the point. To me its the fact that alternative fuels are here. Even if the Lambo would have beaten the chevy by a car length or two, so what ? Losing to a Lambo while you're running stuff out of a Chinese restaurant is great news to me.
A fellow approx a half hour from me ( Allentown, Pa. ) was in the news a year or so ago running the same stuff and was converting diesel cars and trucks to run on this stuff. Strangely, I havent seen a follow up article about him since. Yes, I know we all arent going to pull up to a Mickey D's and tell them to filler up, but geez this is good stuff. Lets support this kind of independent thinking instead of bending over for the oil companies on command.
What happened to the electric car ??

 

[97RangerXLT]

I'm gonna say bullshit too.

Not about the "race" because I didn't even watch the video

About a diesel running on used cooking oil running "smoother"

It's a diesel, it runs like a diesel.
The "slipperyness" of the fuel is IRRELEVANT!

For the others who keep talking and proving their ignorance
It isn't "biodiesel", it's "Waste Vegetible Oil" from which Biodiesel
CAN be made, but to make biodiesel from Vegetable oil (waste or fresh)
requires caustic and ALCOHOL, and it isn't THAT efficient a process.
(Running an engine in "SVO (straight vegetible oil) or WVO" cuts out a lot of steps and
eliminates hazardous byproducts)

But engines running on Bio, WVO or SVO, DO NOT make more power,
they usually make LESS power, and they almost ALWAYS run slightly
"dirtier", because the higher viscosity oil doesn't atomize as easily
and so doesn't burn as completely.

Hyperbole and sensationalism generally piss me off
People repeating hyperbole and sensationalism
(other than as a vehicle for delivery of deserved sarchasm)
piss me off even more.

Bio Diesel and even Vegetable oil is NOT an economically viable alternative to dino oil, simply because there is not and NEVER will be enough of it.
People have NO CLUE how many acres of oil seed crops must be
grown simply to cover the fuel needs of the tractor that plows the fields!

And after you deal with that the tractor needs MORE fuel to harvest the crop!

And a TRUCK needs fuel to transport it to the processing plant.

es, they can come out ahead, but when you start counting ALL the thirsty trucks and figuiring out how many acres are required to grow enough oil to run them ALL you realize you come up short, WAY short.


AD

Ok to address a few points in your reply, I think that the article was refering to the mpg/horsepower gain in the biodiesel engine as opposed to the gas engine that it replaced, ie the mentioned Hummer and the 68 Impala.

Biodiesel is much better for the atmosphere as it does not put out near as much hazardous products.

This is taken from www.biodiesel.org:
"The lifecycle production and use of biodiesel produces approximately 80% less carbon dioxide emissions, and almost 100% less sulfur dioxide. Combustion of biodiesel alone provides over a 90% reduction in total unburned hydrocarbons, and a 75-90% reduction in aromatic hydrocarbons. Biodiesel further provides significant reductions in particulates and carbon monoxide than petroleum diesel fuel. Biodiesel provides a slight increase or decrease in nitrogen oxides depending on engine family and testing procedures. Based on Ames Mutagenicity tests, biodiesel provides a 90% reduction in cancer risks.

Biodiesel is 11% oxygen by weight and contains no sulfur. The use of biodiesel can extend the life of diesel engines because it is more lubricating than petroleum diesel fuel, while fuel consumption, auto ignition, power output, and engine torque are relatively unaffected by biodiesel. "

So in addition to being more environmentally friendly, it is better for the engine and does not affect the power output of the engine. The slipperyness actually extends the life of the engine. I would imagine that this is a big factor in the valve seals and stems.

The production of biodiesel according to the freedom fuel site linked to earlier requires three items: vegetable /animal oil, methanol (100%) and lye. so yeah, you are right, it does use some nasty stuff. but the output is the biodiesel fuel and glycerine, which is completely non toxic and can be disposed of by putting it in your compost for your garden to biodegrade, or you can use the glycerine for hand soap with a little more processing.


Your argument on whether or not biodiesel can be made in enough quantities to replace dino diesel is where you have validity. I agree that there is not going to be enough farmland to support hungry diesel trucks and machinery AND support hungry people as well. But even if we can't replace it, it does give us something to cut the consumption of the dino diesel, even if it is only by 10%. biodiesel will blend with dino in all proportions.

also, you can produce biodiesel from waste vegetable oil as well as refining it fresh from vegetable parts. this is better for environment to as it takes care of recycling used vegetable oil in the form of fuel.


anyways, just my thoughts

AJ

 

[almostclueless]

We're not almost out of petroleum......the gulf of mexico is nowhere near played out and alaskan supplies aren't tapped to their full potential because of the God damned tree huggers.

 

[AllanD]

'What I think is the replacement?

Synthetic oil made from other bio stocks using cheap electricity produced
by NUCLEAR power.

As I see it nuclear power is the ONLY way out of the diminishing energy availability
"Trap" we as a race find ourselves in.

All ATTEMPTS at "conservation" only serve to REDUCE (not eliminate) the rate of consumption INCREASE due to a swelling world poulation.

Yet you say "Nuclear power" in the modern world and three tree hugers
faint dead away and the rest start setting up a stake and gathering kindling....

Nuclear power, we have enough REFINED uranium and plutonium above ground
to provide ALL the world's energy needs for the next 30,000 years.
And if you take into account new technology that uses Thorium to
generate electricity we have sufficient reserves of that to last HUNDREDS
of thousands of years...

Oil reserves diminishing? So what!

Another class of Lawyers graduating from law school?
OH MY GOD the WORLD IS ENDING!!!

Get a grip on REALITY, not hyperbole.

AD

 

[Ranger5.0]

grip on reality? lol, i have a solid grip, I have family in the oil industry, WE arent runing out of oil, and my kids wont, but my grandkids, well, thats somthing to think about. sure, workin on the "20 year plan" a lot of the users on this site will be dead long befor crude oil becomes an issue. But, why not work on ways to conserve it now, why not work on ways to master the use of alternative fuels? Im ny trade, we study stuff just like this. Everyone has an answer, there own two cents, but its not happening. On any given day, The use of crude effects our lives. Even conventional synthetic oils are still using crude as the base stock. We have a long way to come befor we can just say "no, that wont work, and that wont either". bio fuels are the way of the future, we just need to learn how to use it. And, as far as oil under the ice goes, we have the rigs to do it, and the tree huggers arnt the main problem....the problem is finding a way to make it barable to work in incredably harsh conditions. Im sure somones gonna say somthing about somthing i have said, theres no doubt.

 

[Dishtowel]

I'm gonna say bullshit too.

Not about the "race" because I didn't even watch the video

About a diesel running on used cooking oil running "smoother"

It's a diesel, it runs like a diesel.
The "slipperyness" of the fuel is IRRELEVANT!

For the others who keep talking and proving their ignorance
It isn't "biodiesel", it's "Waste Vegetible Oil" from which Biodiesel
CAN be made, but to make biodiesel from Vegetable oil (waste or fresh)
requires caustic and ALCOHOL, and it isn't THAT efficient a process.
(Running an engine in "SVO (straight vegetible oil) or WVO" cuts out a lot of steps and
eliminates hazardous byproducts)

But engines running on Bio, WVO or SVO, DO NOT make more power,
they usually make LESS power, and they almost ALWAYS run slightly
"dirtier", because the higher viscosity oil doesn't atomize as easily
and so doesn't burn as completely.

Hyperbole and sensationalism generally piss me off
People repeating hyperbole and sensationalism
(other than as a vehicle for delivery of deserved sarchasm)
piss me off even more.

Bio Diesel and even Vegetable oil is NOT an economically viable alternative to dino oil, simply because there is not and NEVER will be enough of it.
People have NO CLUE how many acres of oil seed crops must be
grown simply to cover the fuel needs of the tractor that plows the fields!

And after you deal with that the tractor needs MORE fuel to harvest the crop!

And a TRUCK needs fuel to transport it to the processing plant.

es, they can come out ahead, but when you start counting ALL the thirsty trucks and figuiring out how many acres are required to grow enough oil to run them ALL you realize you come up short, WAY short.


AD

With all due respect, there is NOOOOOOO way (EVER) that the farmer will burn more than he produces. We farm 2,600 acres. I "have a clue", lets bust out some math here.

We burn about 4 gallons per acre of fuel for one year of farming, that includes all the tractor work, all the harvesting work, and all the trucking, into the elevator included. Canola, which is used to make cooking/vegetable oil, generally yields between 25-30 bushels per acre for us. ONE bushel is equal to 9.3 gallons. We seed about 1/3 of our farm to canola per year. So we still burn fuel harvesting wheat and barley that does not turn into vegetable oil. So, we have burned 12 gallons per acre of Canola. If the canola yields 25 bushels per acre, that is 233 gallons PER ACRE. In the vegtable oil production process you will lose some volume, lets assume you lose 3/4 the volume. So we, the farmer, burned 12 gal/acre, but harvested 59 gal/acre of vegetable oil . 5 times more than what we put in. Yes, it still has to be handled by rail, but, as you can see, you get more than you put in, Nature is cool that way.

 

[Simple_serf]

Biodoesl and WVO work well, on a limited scale. the problem you run into is that injector pumps are expensive and if you go and screw up your mixture PH wise (easy to do with bodiesel) or allow moisture to get into the oil (easy to do with both wvo and biodiesel) you loose alot of $$$. Trust me on that one.

I have done work with both wind and solar (my computer and all of the lights in this room are currently running on solar power) and, despite me living in an area that isn't good for solar, I do quite well with my hacked together system.

I'm sorry, as someone who is greatly intrigued by nuclear power, I can't say more nukes are the solution. Not because when operated as designed they are excessively unsafe, but because all of the major electrical power reactor accidents have been caused by human error. France has had good luck with their reactors.

Now, Where are my tickets to the ukrane?

Seriously, I want to visit Chernobyl.

The solution is going to be a combination of all of the fuels that have been used in the past, as well as some new ones we don't know about yet. It probably will not be one central fuel, like oil, but probably be more region specific.

Just my opinions.

Paul

 

[Hahnsb2]

Yup I like the idea of nuclear power the only problem is the stupid people running the plants, as said earlier people are the #1 cause of nuclear accidents.