Is the mass use of bio-fuel profoundly misguided?

Question

By industrialized governments subsidizing farmers to make them richer and setting polices for the increased use of biofuels has only caused food prices to exponentially increase. "The global price of wheat has risen by 130 per cent in the past year. Rice has rocketed by 74 per cent in the same period. It went up by more than 10 per cent in a single day last Friday". In just a short amount of time and many poor countries are already starting riots over food.

IMO only waste biofuel like fryer grease and highly efficient geotropha grown in non nonagricultural regions like deserts should be used.

http://www.jatrophabiodiesel.org/

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/politics/the-other-global-crisis-rush-to-biofuels-is-driving-up-price-of-food-808138.html

Answer 1

We need diversity, competition, education, exploration of alternatives.

The use of alternative fuels, to the purchase of oil from nations that are magnets for corruption and terrorism, is very small.  For reasons that have been explained in great detail in other Q+A, the price of gasoline is going up up up up with no end in sight.  This in turn is causing a dramatic increase in the cost of transporting all kinds of foods and other commodities to consumers.

We currently have a crisis with foreclosures of private homes and other eal estate.  A few years ago we had a similar crisis with family farms.  This had a devastating effect on agribusiness competition.  When our food came from a million suppliers, they competed for good selection at good prices.  Now it is a few giant oligarchies that can set any prices and quality they like.

Answer 2

I currently run Bio Fuel (straight vegetable) in a 1999 Dodge 3500 truck. But all Cummins engines were modified from the factory to run on BioD since around 1992 without any modification.

Biofuel is recognized by both the US Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy as an alternative fuel, and qualifies for mandated programs under the Clean Air Act Amendments and the Environmental Protection Act of 1992 (EPAct).

USDA Clears Air with Biofuel: Buses and other diesel-burning vehicles run cleaner if they mix biofuel with regular diesel fuel, said the US Department of Agriculture at a biofuel fuel seminar at a USDA research center.

Conversely most major automotive manufacturers (Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors, etc) recommend the use of bio fuels, and nearly every car manufacturer in the world approves ethanol blends in their warranty coverage.

In fact your probably even driving an ethanol car and didn't even know it.

The trick is finding fuel.

I've been producing biofuel for about 3 years now, it's not extremely difficult. Basically you need general household ingredients, a processor (or still for ethanol) and some used oil. Blend it, let separate, screen and use. I complied a guide a while back to help walk you threw the process step by step, just email me or check out..

http://www.agua-luna.com/guides.html

• 1 liter of new vegetable oil, whatever the supermarket sells as cooking oil

• 200 ml of methanol, 99+% pure

• lye catalyst -- either potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium hydroxide (NaOH)

• blender or mini-processor

• scales accurate to 0.1 grams, preferably less -- 0.01 grams is best

• measuring beakers for methanol and oil

• half-liter translucent white HDPE (#2 plastic) container with bung and s***w-on cap

• 2 funnels to fit the HDPE container

• 2-litre PET bottle (water or soft-drinks bottle) for settling

• two 2-litre PET bottles for washing

• duct tape

• thermometer

Use the "Methoxide the easy way" method -- it's also the safe way. Here's how to do it.

Measure out 200 ml of methanol and pour it into the half-liter HDPE container via the funnel. Methanol also absorbs water from the atmosphere so do it quickly and replace the lid of the methanol container tightly. Don't be too frightened of methanol, if you're working at ordinary room temperature and you keep it at arm's length you won't be exposed to dangerous fumes.

Carefully add the lye to the HDPE container via the second funnel. Replace the bung and the s***w on the cap tightly.

Shake the container a few times -- swirl it round rather than shaking it up and down. The mixture gets hot from the reaction. If you swirl it thoroughly for a minute or so five or six times over a period of time the lye will completely dissolve in the methanol, forming sodium methoxide or potassium methoxide. As soon as the liquid is clear with no undissolved particles you can begin the process.

The more you swirl the container the faster the lye will dissolve. With NaOH it can take from overnight to a few hours to as little as half-an-hour with lots of swirling (but don't be impatient, wait for ALL the lye to dissolve). Mixing KOH is much faster, it dissolves in the methanol more easily than NaOH and can be ready for use in 10 minutes.

Using a blender. Use a spare blender you don't need or get a cheap secondhand one -- cheap because it might not last very long, but it will get you going until you build something better.

Check that the blender seals are in good order. Make sure all parts of the blender are clean and dry and that the blender components are tightly fitted.

Pre-heat the oil to 55 deg C (130 deg F) and pour it into the blender.

With the blender still switched off, carefully pour the prepared methoxide from the HDPE container into the oil.

Secure the blender lid tightly and switch on. Lower speeds should be enough. Blend for at least 20 minutes.

Using a mini-processor. Follow the instructions below and improvise where necessary -- there are many ways of building a processor like this.

Proceed with processing as above, maintain temperature at 55 deg C (130 deg F), process for one hour.

www AGUA-LUNA com

Hope this helped, feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions if you’d like assistance in making your first self sufficient steps, I’m willing to walk you step by step threw the process. I’ve written several how-to DIY guides available at  www agua-luna com on the subject. I also offer online and on-site workshops, seminars and internships to help others help the environment.

Dan Martin

Alterative Energy / Sustainable Consultant, Living 100% on Alternative & Author of How One Simple Yet Incredibly Powerful Resource Is Transforming The Lives of Regular People From All Over The World... Instantly Elevating Their Income & Lowering Their Debt, While Saving The Environment by Using FREE ENERGY... All With Just One Click of A Mouse...For more info Visit:  

www AGUA-LUNA com

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Answer 3

there is only so much waste out there.

but it seems like it would be better to just have solar panels, and get the energy directly from the sun.

Answer 4

We should not burn our source of food period.

They need to try thinking of a better way because it will never work efficiently and may cause more harm than good.

Answer 5

The only significant bio fuel source that is entirely eco-friendly is harvesting the ocean dead zones to provide its substrate. These dead zones have so much vegetation decomposing in the water that all animal life in the area dies.

The deadly effect of this goes far beyond the dead zone. But harvesting the vegetation rather than allowing it to decompose is a really important service.

We can harvest some forest land for bio-fuel without reducing the amount of food producing land. But using farm land for bio-fuel will leave parts of the world starving.

Answer 6

there is a huge debate over this t the moment and I'm personly on the food side of the food-fuel battle as we need food more than fuel lol

Answer 7

I think - I hope - we will eventually settle on a wise renewable fuel source or a few renewables. For now, we do what technology and funding allow. When things like switchgrass can be made into auto-grade fuel, less corn and soybean fields will be converted to fuel and more will go toward food again. It will take a combination of alternatives to provide the world's energy needs. For homes, I like wind and geothermal - wish I could afford to build me a house with a cool green design. It saves money in the long run, but takes $$ up front to get everything built or installed. Hmmm. Maybe someday ...