Biodiesel Rulez!!! [ARCHIVED]

[pitbullz]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6634221.stm

[rsnald]

If in case we use 100% CME to the present diesel engine would it run the same way as using regular diesel?

Rudolf Diesel created an engine but didn't know yet what fuel to use.The original patent was using coal dust then they tried kerosene and many more before a workable fuel was chosen.

balikan ko lang itong question na 'to before the debate on the supply-chain raged

yes, 100% CME or pure BD will run on existing diesel engines, specially the post-1999 models. The older models need only replace the rubber hose or rubber linings to grades that are resistant to 100% CME. CME is a stronger solvent kasi compared to regular diesel and in can dissolve, swell, or embrittle orruin old rubber hoses. Other than that, assuming your diesel engine is running fine or is in good running condition, CME will work.


There was a fuel economy run sponsored by DOE in 2002

http://tsikot.yehey.com/forums/showthread.php?t=928

One of the entries was an isuzu crosswind (owned by one of the CME manufacturers) that ran on pure CME. It didn't win fuel economy honors but did'nt fare too bad. During our early days of toying around with CME, we put pure CME in our L300 crew cab. Ok naman takbo nya, lakas ng hatak, malinis usok. Until the fuel injectors clogged up hehehehe, we did'nt know the proper way to refine CME back then so ayun, we had to repair the fuel injection system. that only emphasizes the fact that CME must conform to the minimim specs mandated by Philippine national standards.

[mbeige]

The gravity of risking using biodiesel on current, factory fuel rubber lines isn't really that high unless you're using really old fuel lines that are somewhat old, cracked, brittle and about to break apart.

But it wouldn't hurt to have all rubber fuel lines replaced when going biodiesel for good. And in case you have fuel leaks above an engine mount, especially if that leak has been there for quite some time, check your engine mounts to be on the safe side na rin. Leaking fuel will degrade the rubber eventually...

[4JGtootsie]

Thanks Bro!

Therefore we are ready for CME.

[4JGtootsie]

Maybe we can do more research on the injectors.
Bosch, DDC, Cummins, Cat will never design pumps, injectors and fuel systems for CME unless there existence depends on it.
Only a company or country who can produce a considerable amount of CME will venture into this research.

[pervagus]

There is a document called the Worldwide Fuel Charter whereby all the automotive manufacturers signed in and said that up to 5% biodiesel use will not affect engine warranties. Anything beyond 5% is at the risk of owners. Now, biodiesel has been in use in Europe for over 10 years and used even to the extent of B100 (cheaper because of gov't subsidies), yet there is nothing on record anywhere that shows biodiesel use has had adverse effects on engines. None. In countries where B5-B10-B20 has been voluntarily observed biodiesel has found widespread acceptance. The only issues were improper storage which is largely due to the particular feedstock used for biodiesel which are nowhere as good as our coconut oil.

The essential thing to know about biodiesel is that it has to be thoroughly purified after the transesterification process. In the case of coconut methyl ester, true, anyone can make it in his garage but not everyone has the capability to purify it properly into fuel-grade biodiesel. Not all CME is automatically coco-biodiesel. You can only call it biodiesel if it meets fuel specifications, specifically the Philippine National Standard (PNS). The oil companies, who naturally have to protect their fuel brands, would surely deal only with suppliers who can at least consistently meet PNS. Unfortunately this would exclude a lot of small producers who cannot make the grade and that is a fact of life in the business where quality and reliability is critical. You need to have the resources (manufacturing and logistics) and the scale to be a serious producer of quality biofuels.

There are risks in using improperly purified CME in your diesel engine. Too high glycerine content will cause polymerization or gumming up of your engine. Too high moisture content or acid number is corrosive. Excessive methanol (the alcohol used in the esterification process) will affect fuel pumps and seals and lowers the flash point of the biodiesel. You will need the proper equipment, instruments and quality control practices to ensure adequate purification of the CME. A homebrewer would not have this resource and will unlikely have a consistently reliable product. This goes to say that any motorist would be risking it by using homemade CME or CME being retailed by companies which do not have the purification capability. And there are lots of them out there.

And, by the way, anyone with a CRDi vehicle is actually better off using coco-biodiesel blended into diesel. Coco-biodiesel is the equivalent of Euro-3 standard diesel for which CRDi engines were designed for. Thus, it stands to reason that coco-biodiesel would actually improve local diesel which is, at best, only up to Euro-2 standard.

[amacatan]

sirs, san nakakabili ng biodiesel manufactured by chemrez? yung nabibili ko lang e yung manufactured by senbel e. gusto ko sana ma-try kung may difference.

[ans3288]

i own a 4jx1 trooper and had a lot of probs with the engine already.

i don't know if am dreaming but after 2 tanks of diesel with 1% blended with biodiesel engine seems to run smoother. no stalling during acceleration but i can't seem to justify how 1% will give such a marked improvement in performance!

anybody care to explain, but i know the engine is running better cause before when am idling, the engine sometimes 'skips a beat' so when you hear it parang palyado, now its running smoother.

[mbeige]

i own a 4jx1 trooper and had a lot of probs with the engine already.

i don't know if am dreaming but after 2 tanks of diesel with 1% blended with biodiesel engine seems to run smoother. no stalling during acceleration but i can't seem to justify how 1% will give such a marked improvement in performance!

anybody care to explain, but i know the engine is running better cause before when am idling, the engine sometimes 'skips a beat' so when you hear it parang palyado, now its running smoother.

Like I said earlier, biodiesel has higher cetane but lower BTU. The lower BTU is responsible for a smoother idle because it doesn't have as much energy as regular diesel would.

[rsebastian]

I beg to disagree with Pervagus that only the BIG BOYS can make quality biodiesel. A homebrewer in the Bahamas Jack Kenworthy passed no less than the US ASTM standards from which the PNS is based on. (Search the email archives of fourneytoforever.org and don't tell me his product pass because he's a foreigner.) There are also people in the country who do make quality biodiesel but just don't have tons of much money to spend on PNS testing.

Statements like Pervagus' could only have come from someone who is either works for the big boys or one who sells their product. Which are you? It's understandable that you would want to protect their interest but why resort to such hasty generalizations. Are they afraid of some competition? Pervagus said that the oil suppliers would only buy from consistent PNS passers. That is already a big chunk of the market.

He would probably say that he just want to protect the reputation of the product. But I don't think we need anyone for that. Consumers are automatically critical in choosing what they put in their engines. They won't just start using biodiesel just becasue the government PNS says its good. Supprisingly enough jeepney drivers are as critical too. Drivers start with just a liter or two then (upon seeing the benefits) gradually increase usage when they don't encounter any problems. THE PROOF OF THE PUDDING IS IN THE EATING.

The thing is the big boys don't wan't other players because they don't want the price of their product going down. But why would they be threatened by small producers? The answer is because "some of these small time producers can actually make quality biodiesel at lower cost".

People keep saying coco-biodiesel being the best biodiesel there is. A newspaper article went as far as saying that NREL say so? I have copy of the NREL report but I don't see any of that in the report. The problem with us is that we take small things and blow it out of proportion.

And Pervagus, do you know why coco-biodiesel is better if not the best biodiesel performancewise? People keep saying this but I don't see any explanation.

Best,
rsebastian