Let's talk transportation. More specifically let's talk about fuel. I'm not going to preach to the choir about the danger of polluting with petroleum based fuels, but I will elaborate about the specific pollution caused by diesel fuel because that's the fuel this particular organization uses to motor about the country side.
The major regulated pollutants diesel engines emit are particulates (smoke), hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, and carbon monoxide.
Diesel particulate matter is the small solid, and liquid particles emitted by diesel engines. The size and chemical composition of these particles is the chief reasons for concern about the effects on human health. The small size increases the likelihood the particles will reach the deepest and most sensitive areas of the human lungs. Particulate matter that accumulates in lungs can lead to severe lung problems and increased susceptibility to respiratory infections.
Nitrogen oxides (NOx) are several gases composed of nitrogen and oxygen. Breathed in sufficient quantity they are potentially fatal. Smaller doses lead to bronchopneumonia, chronic fibrosis, bronchitis, emphysema, and increases in heart and lung diseases. Nitrogen dioxide is of the most concern because it is relatively more harmful than other forms of NOx.
NOx also contributes to formation of ground level ozone. Ozone severely irritates the mucous membranes of the nose and throat causing coughing and choking It also impairs normal functioning of the lungs and may cause permanent damage with prolonged exposure. While living in the San Francisco area I personally experienced the coughing and choking ozone causes; it is not enjoyable, hard to escape from, and a major quality of life issue
Carbon monoxide is a colorless, odorless, poisonous gas composed of carbon and oxygen. The gas is formed from the incomplete burning of carbon based fuels. When inhaled. CO enters the bloodstream, binds chemically to hemoglobin, which carries oxygen to the cells, and reduces oxygen delivery to all tissues. Even at low concentrations, CO can adversely affect mental function, visual acuity, and alertness.
There is recent research that strongly indicates that whole diesel exhaust can cause tumors to grow in animals, cause cancer and genetic mutations in bacteria and mammalian cells, and cause chromosome damage,
The EPA has set standards for lower and lower emissions and yet I feel abandoning fossil-fuel diesel would be a giant leap towards eliminating air pollution. It might also eliminate a dependency on foreign markets and reduce the global violence that has surrounded the protection of these foreign resources. If we could eliminate petroleum from our lives we might also take back the power we have given the huge oil conglomerates over the daily routine of our American lives.
The best alternative we have found here at Dancing Rabbit is walking (very low emissions). Water and carbon dioxide seem to be it. However walking often leaves something to be desired, so in the alternative fuel department there are METHYL ESTERS.
Methyl esters are made from three ingredients; vegetable oil, methanol, and sodium hydroxide (known to plumbers world wide as Lye). Methyl esters are made using a process called transesterification. The basic concept is to take a little lye, mix it with some methanol, and stir it into about five times as much vegetable oil. Pretty simple.
The mad scientist then stirs the mixture (probably with an outboard motor) for about an hour, lets the stuff sit over night, removes the byproducts, glycerin and soap from the bottom of the mixing chamber in the morning, and wah-la:"BIO-DIESEL"!
Now I here someone out there asking, "So?".
Well bio-diesel (methyl ester) has some clear advantages when stacked against petroleum diesel. First let's talk emissions
Running bio-diesel requires no engine modification. However with the edition of a catalytic converter and a slight change in timing, emission pollutants can be cut by staggering percentages. The reliable data I can find on bio-diesel emissions involves a 20/80 bio to petro-diesel mix. This is the ratio used by many urban buses to meet city emission standards and has been researched thoroughly.
100% bio-diesel exhibits almost identical energy attributes compared with its petrol counterpart allowing no loss of power from the vehicle.
Vegetable oil is locally available in most parts of the country and every place where fast food restaurants exist. What I am saying is that used fryer oil can be made into bio-diesel. Everyday every fast food restaurant, every McDonald's, every Burger King, every Long John Silver's, and every Jack in the Box in the nation produces gallons and gallons of waste oil. All of this waste could be turned into fuel for our van (or yours). And since the restaurants often have to pay to have it removed, the enterprising environmentalist can get the oil for free! Fast food fryer oil is the key to making bio-diesel affordable and lets us burn fuel from a recycled fuel source.
One of the most satisfying aspects of this fuel is that it is theoretically sustainable. It is possible to grow oil producing crops in a way that could supply fuel for centuries to come. However it is also very possible to abuse farm land in the quest for profitable vegetable oils. Human needs for energy are increasing at an incredible rate. Fossil fuels are a limited resource and will run out. Careful planning to meet our energy needs need to be made or the sustainable fuels will be grasped and clawed at as our fossil energy dwindles, and those potentially sustainable fuels won't ever become the clean renewable energy that they promise to be today.
Well...anyway, getting off my soap box, we here at Dancing Rabbit have made a commitment to eliminating fossil fuel consumption and have gone so far as to make it a covenant in the lease agreements intrinsic to living at the Dancing Rabbit Land Trust. Methyl esters may not be the perfect fuel or the solution for everyone, but we wanted to start somewhere. We hope that it will prove effective, economical, and environmentally friendly. Once we are out of research phase and into proven production you will probably find me back on a soap box. It will be nice to have something positive to say.
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