Biodiesel

Lately, I have been looking at the biodiesel industry in this country and it is really beginning to make sense to me. The fact that we are importing around 60% of our petroleum supply from other countries when we have a completely renewable, sustainable, source of energy here is beyond reason.

The farmers in America need the income produced by the crops that make biodiesel and if the usage grows there will be a complete industry that grows, produces and distributes the fuel.

Environmentally the statistics are quite impressive. Biodiesel produces about 40% to 50% fewer harmful emissions that does petro diesel. The NOX emissions are a bit higher but not much. The BTU content is about 5% to 8% lower but the cetane rating is higher depending on the type of crop used to produce the fuel. In my Cummins/Dodge I have been running B20 (80% PD/20% BD) and find that the truck performs exactly the same and gets the same mileage as when I used 100% PD.

The problem is cost. Here B20 is about $.30 higher than PD. It is made elsewhere and trucked into our state so that must add to the cost. Down near Dallas it is the same price as PD. I think states and local governments should waive some taxes on biodiesel in order to encourage greater use and kick start it into the mainstream.

Energy cost is going to become a major factor in all of our budgets and I think we are going to see more and more drivers and owners thinking long term about saving money and getting more efficient. A 2% savings over 100,000 miles can mean some real money when fuel is $2.65/gallon.

I would be interested to hear any experiences of truckers who have been using biodisel in their rigs. Please post comments to this blog.

BTW, take a look at www.wnbiodiesel.com, Willie Nelson's web site concerning biodiesel. He has partnered with some guys down in Texas and they are marketing Willie Nelson Biodiesel at truck stops in Texas, California, South Carolina, and Georgia so far. They have these dandy above ground tank units that make it real easy to add BD to an existing truck stop or station. He is interested in the plight of the American farmers and thinks that it is important to support their efforts and economy. The web site has tons of information about production and use of BD. I entirely agree with their position and think we should try to use BD whenever possible. I use it in my tractor and truck so far and thinking about converting from B20 to B100. (B100 works in the warm weather but should be blended with PD in the winter to prevent icing of the fuel.)

Category Posted: General