Hi Readers,

eventually, after 2,5 years' hiatus, I'm back to post in this blog.

hope you can enjoy the posts..starting today!

Benjamin

• 0 komentar »

Ketika harga minyak dunia terus naik mencapai kisaran di atas USD 100 per barrel, Pemerintah Indonesia menaikan harga BBM menjadi Rp 6.500 per liter. Semua berteriak, karena kenaikan harga BBM ini akan diikuti dengan kenaikan harga kebutuhan hidup lainnya.

Namun, di bulan terakhir ini, setelah resesi di Amerika menular cepat ke kawasan lain di dunia, harga minyak melorot, hingga ke level USD 70an per barrel. Lalu, saya heran, kenapa rakyat Indonesia tidak segera minta agar harga BBM diturunkan ya?

Pemerintah selalu berkata, Indonesia merupakan negara pengekspor minyak (dulunya), sekarang menjadi negara pengimpor. Dengan kebutuhan pemakaian minyak dalam negeri yang besar, kita memerlukan pasokan dari luar.

Padahal kita mempunyai kilang minyak baik di darat maupun lepas pantai. Kenapa kelangsungan hidup negara ini harus bergantung kepada fluktuasi harga minyak dunia?

Saya coba menarik benang merah Indonesia dengan Brazil. Dimana kedua negara ini sama sama memiliki jumlah penduduk yang besar, dan hutang yang besar. Di awal 80an, Brazil merupakan salah satu negara di Amerika Latin yang hampir bangkrut karena lilitan beban hutang.
Di sisi lain, Indonesia juga tenar dengan jumlah utang nya, terutama semenjak krismon 1998 lalu. Namun, Brazil berhasil menunjukkan titik balik perbaikan ekonomi, yang salah satu dilandasi dengan program penggunaan bio diesel.

Di Brazil, hampir 20% dari konsumsi bahan bakar telah menggunakan bio diesel. Jadi, negara ini relatif tahan dengan guncangan harga minyak internasional(fossil diesel). Lebih dari itu, Brazil telah menjadi negara pengekspor biodiesel terbesar di dunia.

Balik ke Indonesia, jika Pemerintah berpikir strategik, kita juga dapat menjadi negara pemakai dan penghasil biodiesel. Dengan luas lahan yang berkelimpahan, iklim tropis dan suburnya tanah, tanaman singkong, tebu, kelapa sawit, jarak, dapat digunakan menjadi sumber energi alternatif (energi nabati).

Namun, sekali lagi, sayangnya, Pemerintah tidak bertindak cepat dalam membaca trend masa depan energi. Baru bulan ini, DPR mengesahkan adanya UU Penggunaan Energi Nabati, yang efektif berlaku mulai Jan 09 nanti. Di tengarai, sekitar 5% kebutuhan minyak haruslah berasal dari sumber energi nabati ini.

Better late than never.

Namun, apakah UU ini dapat diantisipasi oleh pasar? Apakah kebutuhan energi nabati ini dapat disupplai oleh industri energi nabati dalam negerl? Karena banyak industri ini mati suri, disebabkan oleh tiada nya dukungan dari Pemerintah di waktu lalu.

Pembaca, kenapa sih Pemerintah kita sering terlambat dalam penetapan hal hal yang berhubungan dengan hajat hidup orang banyak?

• 0 komentar »

Readers,

what the environmental impacts of using ethanol?

Environment
All biomass goes through at least some of these steps: it needs to be grown, collected, dried, fermented, and burned. All of these steps require resources and an infrastructure. The total amount of energy input into the process compared to the energy released by burning the resulting ethanol fuel is known as the energy balance.

Figures compiled in a 2007 by National Geographic Magazine[31] point to modest results for corn ethanol produced in the US: one unit of fossil-fuel energy is required to create 1.3 energy units from the resulting ethanol. The energy balance for sugarcane ethanol produced in Brazil is more favorable, 1:8. Energy balance estimates are not easily produced, thus numerous such reports have been generated that are contradictory. For instance, a separate survey reports that production of ethanol from sugarcane, which requires a tropical climate to grow productively, returns from 8 to 9 units of energy for each unit expended, as compared to corn which only returns about 1.34 units of fuel energy for each unit of energy expended.[79]

Carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, is emitted during fermentation and combustion. However, this is canceled out by the greater uptake of carbon dioxide by the plants as they grow to produce the biomass.[80] When compared to gasoline, depending on the production method, ethanol releases less greenhouse gases.[81][82]

Air pollution
Compared with conventional unleaded gasoline, ethanol is a particulate-free burning fuel source that combusts cleanly with oxygen to form carbon dioxide and water. Gasoline produces 2.44 CO2 equivalent kg/l and ethanol 1.94 (this is -21% CO2). The Clean Air Act requires the addition of oxygenates to reduce carbon monoxide emissions in the United States. The additive MTBE is currently being phased out due to ground water contamination, hence ethanol becomes an attractive alternative additive. Current production methods includes air pollution from the manufacturer of macronutrient fertilizers such as ammonia.

A study by atmospheric scientists at Stanford University found that E85 fuel would increase the risk of air pollution deaths relative to gasoline.[83] Ozone levels are significantly increased, thereby increasing photochemical smog and aggravating medical problems such as asthma.[84][85]

Manufacture
In 2002, monitoring of ethanol plants revealed that they released VOCs (volatile organic compounds) at a higher rate than had previously been disclosed.[86] The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) subsequently reached settlement with Archer Daniels Midland and Cargill, two of the largest producers of ethanol, to reduce emission of these VOCs. VOCs are produced when fermented corn mash is dried for sale as a supplement for livestock feed. Devices known as thermal oxidizers or catalytic oxidizers can be attached to the plants to burn off the hazardous gases.

Carbon Dioxide
Calculation of Carbon Intensity of Corn Bioethanol grown in the US and burnt in the UK, using UK government calculation [87]

Graph of UK figures for the Carbon Intensity of bioethanol and fossil fuels. This graph assumes that all bioethanols are burnt in their country of origin and that prevously existing cropland is used to grow the feedstock.[87]

The calculation of exactly how much Carbon Dioxide is produced in the manufacture of bioethanol is a complex and inexact process, and is highly dependent on the method by which the ethanol is produced and the assumptions made in the calculation. A calculation should include:

The cost of growing the feedstock
The cost of transporting the feedstock to the factory
The cost of processing the feedstock into bioethanol
Such a calculation may or may not consider the following effects:
The cost of the change in land use of the area where the fuel feedstock is grown.
The cost of transportation of the bioethanol from the factory to its point of use
The efficiency of the bioethnol compared with standard gasoline
The amount of Carbon Dioxide produced at the tail pipe.
The benefits due to the production of useful bi-products, such as cattle feed or electricity.
The graph on the right shows figures calculated by the UK government for the purposes of the Renewable transport fuel obligation.[87]

The January 2006 Science article from UC Berkeley's ERG, estimated reduction from corn ethanol in GHG to be 13% after reviewing a large number of studies. However, in a correction to that article released shortly after publication, they reduce the estimated value to 7.4%. A National Geographic Magazine overview article (2007)[31] puts the figures at 22% less CO2 emissions in production and use for corn ethanol compared to gasoline and a 56% reduction for cane ethanol. Carmaker Ford reports a 70% reduction in CO2 emissions with bioethanol compared to petrol for one of their flexible-fuel vehicles.[88]

An additional complication is that production requires tilling new soil[89] which produces a one-off release of GHG that it can take decades or centuries of production reductions in GHG emissions to equalize.[90] As an example, converting grass lands to corn production for ethanol takes about a century of annual savings to make up for the GHG released from the initial tilling.[91]

Change in land use
Large-scale farming is necessary to produce agricultural alcohol and this requires substantial amounts of cultivated land. University of Minnesota researchers report that if all corn grown in the U.S. were used to make ethanol it would displace 12% of current U.S. gasoline consumption.[92] There are claims that land for ethanol production is acquired through deforestation, while others have observed that areas currently supporting forests are usually not suitable for growing crops.[93][94] In any case, farming may involve a decline in soil fertility due to reduction of organic matter,[95] a decrease in water availability and quality, an increase in the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and potential dislocation of local communities.[96] However, new technology enables farmers and processors to increasingly produce the same output using less inputs.[92]

There is a concern that as demand for ethanol fuel increases, food crops are replaced by fuel crops, driving food supply down and food prices up. Growing demand for ethanol in the United States has been discussed as a factor in the increased corn prices in Mexico.[97] Average barley prices in the United States rose 17% from January to June 2007 to the highest in 11 years. However, some commentators suggest that recent food price increases mainly reflect high oil prices in recent years, not specific pressures associated with ethanol production.[98]
Cellulosic ethanol production is a new approach which may alleviate land use and related concerns. Cellulosic ethanol can be produced from any plant material, potentially doubling yields, in an effort to minimize conflict between food needs versus fuel needs. Instead of utilizing only the starch by-products from grinding wheat and other crops, cellulosic ethanol production maximizes the use of all plant materials, including gluten. This approach would have a smaller carbon footprint because the amount of energy-intensive fertilisers and fungicides remain the same for higher output of usable material. The technology for producing cellulosic ethanol is currently in the commercialization stage.[99][100]

Many analysts suggest that, whichever ethanol fuel production strategy is used, fuel conservation efforts are also needed to make a large impact on reducing petroleum fuel use

• 1 komentar »

Hi Bloggers,



we push through to 3rd part of biodiesel discussion



Europe


The consumption of bioethanol is largest in Europe in Germany, Sweden, France and Spain. Europe produces equivalent to 90% of its consumption (2006). Germany produced ca 70% of its consumption, Spain 60% and Sweden 50% (2006). In Sweden there are 792 E85 filling stations and in France 131 E85 service stations with 550 more under construction.[56]
On Monday, September 17, 2007 the first ethanol fuel pump was opened in Reykjavik, Iceland. This pump is the only one of its kind in Iceland. The fuel is imported by Brimborg, a Volvo dealer, as a pilot to see how ethanol fueled cars work in Iceland. In a few weeks, the pump will be opened for public use.[citation needed]


In The Netherlands regular petrol with no bio-additives is slowly outphased, since EU-legislation has been passed that requires the fraction of nonmineral origin to become minimum 5,75% of the total fuel consumption volume in 2010. This can be realised by substitutions in diesel or in petrol of any biological source; or fuel sold in the form of pure biofuel. (2007:) There are only a few gas stations where E85 is sold, which is an 85% ethanol, 15% petrol mix.[62] Directly neighbouring country Germany is reported to have a much better biofuel infrastructure and offers both E85 and E50. Biofuel is taxed equally as regular fuel. However, fuel tanked abroad cannot be taxed and a recent payment receipt will in most cases suffice to prevent fines if customs check tank contents. (Authorities are aware of high taxation on fuels and cross-border fuel refilling is a well-known practice.)



Asia

China
China is promoting ethanol-based fuel on a pilot basis in five cities in its central and northeastern region, a move designed to create a new market for its surplus grain and reduce consumption of petroleum. The cities include Zhengzhou, Luoyang and Nanyang in central China's Henan province, and Harbin and Zhaodong in Heilongjiang province, northeast China. Under the program, Henan will promote ethanol-based fuel across the province by the end of this year. Officials say the move is of great importance in helping to stabilize grain prices, raise farmers' income and reducing petrol- induced air pollution.[65]

Thailand
Thailand already use 10% ethanol (E10) widely on big scale on the local market. Beginning in 2008 Thailand started with the sale of E20 and the in the third quarter of 2008 E85 will come on the mark.

Australia
Main article: Ethanol fuel in Australia
Legislation in Australia imposes a 10% cap on the concentration of fuel ethanol blends. Blends of 90% unleaded petrol and 10% fuel ethanol are commonly referred to as E10. E10 is available through service stations operating under the BP, Caltex, Shell and United brands as well as those of a number of smaller independents. Not surprisingly, E10 is most widely available closer to the sources of production in Queensland and New South Wales. E10 is most commonly blended with 91 RON "regular unleaded" fuel. There is a requirement that retailers label blends containing fuel ethanol on the dispenser.

Caribbean Basin
All countries in Central America, northern South America and the Caribbean are located in a tropical zone with suitable climate for growing sugar cane. In fact, most of these countries have a long tradition of growing sugar cane mainly for producing sugar and alcoholic beverages.


As a result of the guerilla movements in Central America, in 1983 the United States unilateral and temporarily approved the Caribbean Basin Initiative, allowing most countries in the region to benefit from several tariff and trade benefits. These benefits were made permanent in 1990 and more recently, these benefits were replaced by the Caribbean Basin Trade and Partnership Act, approved in 2000, and the Dominican Republic–Central America Free Trade Agreement that went to effect in 2008.



All these agreements have allowed several countries in the region to export ethanol to the U.S free of tariffs.[47] Until 2004, the countries that benefited the most were Jamaica and Costa Rica, but as the U.S. began demanding more fuel ethanol, the two countries increased their exports and two others began exporting. In 2007, Jamaica, El Salvador, Trinidad & Tobago and Costa Rica exported together to the U.S. a total of 230.5 million gallons of ethanol, representing 54.1% of U.S. fuel ethanol imports. Brasil began exporting ethanol to the U.S. in 2004 and exported 188.8 million gallons representing 44.3% of U.S. ethanol imports in 2007. The remaining imports that year came from Canada and China.[32]


In March 2007, "ethanol diplomacy" was the focus of President George W. Bush's Latin American tour, in which he and Brazil's president, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, were seeking to promote the production and use of sugar cane based ethanol throughout Latin America and the Caribbean. The two countries also agreed to share technology and set international standards for biofuels.[43] The Brazilian sugar cane technology transfer would allow several Central American, Caribbean and Andean countries to take advantage of their tariff-free trade agreements to increase or become exporters to the United States in the short-term.[66] Also, in August 2007, Brazil's President toured Mexico and several countries in Central America and the Caribbean to promote Brazilian ethanol technology.[67] The ethanol alliance between the U.S. and Brazil generated some negative reactions from Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez,[68] and by then Cuba's President, Fidel Castro, who wrote that "you will see how many people among the hungry masses of our planet will no longer consume corn." "Or even worse," he continued, "by offering financing to poor countries to produce ethanol from corn or any other kind of food, no tree will be left to defend humanity from climate change."'[69] Daniel Ortega, Nicaragua's President, and one of the preferencial recipients of Brazilian technical aid also voiced critics to the Bush plan, but he vowed support for sugar cane based ethanol during Lula's visit to Nicaragua.[70][71]

Colombia
Colombia's ethanol program began in 2002, based on a law approved in 2001 mandating a mix of 10% ethanol with regular gasoline. Sugar cane-based ethanol production began in 2005, and as local production was not enough to supply enough ethanol to the entire country's fleet, the program was implemented only on cities with more than 500,000 inhabitants, such as Cali, Pereira, and the capital city of Bogotá. All of the ethanol production comes from the Department of Valle del Cauca, Colombia's traditional sugar cane region.

Costa Rica
Starting in October 2008, all gasoline sold in Costa Rica will be blended with 7.5% ethanol. This follows a two year trial that took place in the provinces of Guanacaste and Puntarenas. The government expects to increase the percent of ethanol mixed with gasoline to 12% in the next 4 to 5 years. The Costa Rican government is pursuing this policy to lower the country's dependency of foreign oil and to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases produced. The plan also calls for an increase in ethanol producing crops and tax breaks for flex-fuel vehicles.[72]

El Salvador
As a result of the cooperation agreement between the United States and Brazil, El Salvador was chosen in 2007 to lead a pilot experience to introduce state-of-the-art technology for growing sugar cane for production of ethanol fuel in Central America, as this technical bilateral cooperation is looking for helping Central American countries to reduce their dependence on foreign oil.[73]

Comparison between Brazil and the U.S.
Brazil's sugar cane-based industry is far more efficient than the U.S. corn-based industry. Brazilian distillers are able to produce ethanol for 22 cents per liter, compared with the 30 cents per liter for corn-based ethanol.[74] Sugarcane cultivation requires a tropical or subtropical climate, with a minimum of 600 mm (24 in) of annual rainfall. Sugarcane is one of the most efficient photosynthesizers in the plant kingdom, able to convert up to 2% of incident solar energy into biomass. Ethanol is produced by yeast fermentation of the sugar extracted from sugar cane.


Sugarcane production in the United States occurs in Florida, Louisiana, Hawaii, and Texas. In prime growing regions, such as Hawaii, sugarcane can produce 20 kg for each square meter exposed to the sun. The first three plants to produce sugar cane-based ethanol are expected to go online in Louisiana by mid 2009. Sugar mill plants in Lacassine, St. James and Bunkie were converted to sugar cane-based ethanol production using Colombian technology in order to make possible a profitable ethanol production. These three plants will produce 100 million gallons of ethanol within five years.[75]


U.S. corn-derived ethanol costs 30% more because the corn starch must first be converted to sugar before being distilled into alcohol. Unfortunately, despite this cost differential in production, in contrast to Japan and Sweden, the U.S. does not import much of Brazilian ethanol because of U.S. trade barriers corresponding to a tariff of 54-cent per gallon – a levy designed to offset the 51-cent per gallon blender's federal tax credit that is applied to ethanol no matter its country of origin.[76] One advantage U.S. corn-derived ethanol offers is the ability to return 1/3 of the feedstock back into the market as a replacement for the corn used in the form of Distillers Dried Grain.[51]

• 0 komentar »

Hi Readers,



continuation of biodiesel topic, as taken from wikipedia.com



Experience by country


The top five ethanol producers in 2006 were the United States with 4.855 billion U.S. liquid gallons (bg), Brazil (4.49 bg), China (1.02 bg), India (0.50 bg) and France (0.25 bg).[32]



Brazil and the United States accounted for 70 percent of all ethanol production, with total world production of 13.5 billion US gallons (40 million tonnes). When accounting just for fuel ethanol production in 2007, the U.S. and Brazil are responsible for 88% of the 13.1 billion gallons total world production. Strong incentives, coupled with other industry development initiatives, are giving rise to fledgling ethanol industries in countries such as Thailand, Colombia, and some Central American countries. Nevertheless, ethanol has yet to make a dent in world oil consumption of approximately 4000 million tonnes/yr (84 million barrels/day).[33]



Brazil
Main article: Ethanol fuel in Brazil

Brazil has ethanol fuel available throughout the country. A typical Petrobras filling station at São Paulo with dual fuel service, marked A for alcohol (ethanol) and G for gasoline.

Typical Brazilian "flex" models from several car makers, that run on any blend of ethanol and gasoline.
Brazil has the largest and most successful bio-fuel programs in the world, involving production of ethanol fuel from sugar cane, and it is considered to have the world's first sustainable biofuels economy.[35][36][37]



In 2006 Brazilian ethanol provided around 20% of the country's road transport sector fuel consumption needs, and more than 40% of fuel consumption for the light vehicle fleet.[38][39] [36] As a result of the increasing use of ethanol, together with the exploitation of domestic deep water oil sources, Brazil, which years ago had to import a large share of the petroleum needed for domestic consumption, in 2006 reached complete self-sufficiency in oil supply.[40][41][42]
Together, Brazil and the United States lead the industrial world in global ethanol production, accounting together for 70% of the world's production[43] and nearly 90% of ethanol used for fuel. [44] In 2006 Brazil produced 16.3 billion liters (4.3 billion U.S. liquid gallons),[32] which represents 33.3% of the world's total ethanol production and 42% of the world's ethanol used as fuel.[44] Sugar cane plantations cover 3.6 million hectares of land for ethanol production, representing just 1% of Brazil's arable land, with a productivity of 7,500 liters of ethanol per hectare, as compared with the U.S. maize ethanol productivity of 3,000 liters per hectare.[45][35]


Production and use of ethanol has been stimulated through:
Low-interest loans for the construction of ethanol distilleries
Guaranteed purchase of ethanol by the state-owned oil company at a reasonable price
Retail pricing of neat ethanol so it is competitive if not slightly favorable to the gasoline-ethanol blend. Tax incentives provided during the 1980s to stimulate the purchase of neat ethanol vehicles.[46]


Guaranteed purchase and price regulation were ended some years ago, with relatively positive results. In addition to these other policies, ethanol producers in the state of São Paulo established a research and technology transfer center that has been effective in improving sugar cane and ethanol yields.[46]


There are no longer light vehicles in Brazil running on pure gasoline. Since 1977 the government made mandatory to blend 20% of ethanol (E20) with gasoline (gasohol), requiring just a minor adjustment on regular gasoline motors. Today the mandatory blend is allowed to vary nationwide between 20% to 25% ethanol (E25) and it is used by all regular gasoline vehicles, plus three million cars running on 100% anhydrous ethanol and five million of dual or flexible-fuel vehicles. The Brazilian car manufacturing industry developed full flexible-fuel vehicles that can run on any proportion of gasoline and ethanol.[47] Introduced in the market in 2003, these vehicles became a commercial success.[48] On March 2008, the fleet of "flex" cars and light commercial vehicles had reached 5 million new vehicles sold.[49] which represents around 10% of Brazil's motor vehicle fleet and 15.6% of all light vehicles.[50] The ethanol-powered and "flex" vehicles, as they are popularly known, are manufactured to tolerate hydrated ethanol, an azeotrope comprised of 95.6% ethanol and 4.4% water.[51]



United States
Main article: Ethanol fuel in the United States


The United States produces and consumes more ethanol fuel than any other country in the world. Most cars on the road today in the U.S. can run on blends of up to 10% ethanol, and motor vehicle manufacturers already produce vehicles designed to run on much higher ethanol blends. In 2007 Portland, Oregon, became the first city in the United States to require all gasoline sold within city limits to contain at least 10% ethanol.[52][53] As of January 2008, three states — Missouri, Minnesota, and Hawaii — require ethanol to be blended with gasoline motor fuel. Many cities are also required to use an ethanol blend due to non-attainment of federal air quality goals.[54]

A Ford Taurus "fueled by clean burning ethanol" owned by New York City.
Several motor vehicle manufacturers, including Ford, DaimlerChrysler, and GM, sell flexible-fuel vehicles that can use gasoline and ethanol blends ranging from pure gasoline all the way up to 85% ethanol (E85). By mid-2006, there were approximately six million E85-compatible vehicles on U.S. roads.[55]


In the USA there are currently 1,522 stations distributing ethanol, although most stations are in the corn belt area.[56][57] One of the debated methods for distribution in the US is using existing oil pipelines,[58] which raises concerns over corrosion. In any case, some companies proposed building a 1,700-mile pipeline to carry ethanol from the Midwest through Central Pennsylvania to New York. [59]


The production of fuel ethanol from corn in the United States is controversial for a few reasons. Production of ethanol from corn is 5 to 6 times less efficient than producing it from sugarcane. Ethanol production from corn is highly dependent upon subsidies and it consumes a food crop to produce fuel.[31] The subsidies paid to fuel blenders and ethanol refineries have often been cited as the reason for driving up the price of corn, and in farmers planting more corn and the conversion of considerable land to corn (maize) production which generally consumes more fertilizers and pesticides than many other land uses.[31] This is at odds with the subsidies actually paid directly to farmers that are designed to take corn land out of production and pay farmers to plant grass and idle the land, often in conjunction with soil conservation programs, in an attempt to boost corn prices. Recent developments with cellulosic ethanol production and commercialization may allay some of these concerns.[60]

• 0 komentar »

Hi reades,


lets learn step by step about Biodiesel - taken from Wikipedia


Biodiesel refers to a non-petroleum-based diesel fuel consisting of short chain alkyl (methyl or ethyl) esters, made by transesterification of vegetable oils or animal fats, which can be used (alone, or blended with conventional petrodiesel) in unmodified diesel-engine vehicles. Biodiesel is distinguished from the straight vegetable oil (SVO) (aka "waste vegetable oil", "WVO", "unwashed biodiesel", "pure plant oil", "PPO") used (alone, or blended) as fuels in some converted diesel vehicles. "Biodiesel" is standardized as mono-alkyl ester and other kinds of diesel-grade fuels of biological origin are not included.[1]


Blends
Blends of biodiesel and conventional hydrocarbon-based diesel are products most commonly distributed for use in the retail diesel fuel marketplace. Much of the world uses a system known as the "B" factor to state the amount of biodiesel in any fuel mix: fuel containing 20% biodiesel is labeled B20, while pure biodiesel is referred to as B100.


It is common to see B99, since 1% petrodiesel is sufficiently toxic to retard mold. Blends of 20 percent biodiesel with 80 percent petroleum diesel (B20) can generally be used in unmodified diesel engines. Biodiesel can also be used in its pure form (B100), but may require certain engine modifications to avoid maintenance and performance problems. Blending B100 with petro diesel may be accomplished by:

Mixing in tanks at manufacturing point prior to delivery to tanker truck
Splash mixing in the tanker truck (adding specific percentages of Biodiesel and Petro Diesel)
In-line mixing, two components arrive at tanker truck simultaneously.

Origin
On August 31, 1937, G. Chavanne of the University of Brussels (Belgium) was granted a patent for a 'Procedure for the transformation of vegetable oils for their uses as fuels' (fr. 'Procédé de Transformation d’Huiles Végétales en Vue de Leur Utilisation comme Carburants') Belgian Patent 422,877. This patent described the alcoholysis (often referred to as transesterification) of vegetable oils using ethanol (and mentions methanol) in order to separate the fatty acids from the glycerol by replacing the glycerol with short linear alcohols. This appears to be the first account of the production of what is known as 'biodiesel' today.[2]

Applications
Biodiesel can be used in pure form (B100) or may be blended with petroleum diesel at any concentration in most modern diesel engines. Biodiesel has different solvent properties than petrodiesel, and will degrade natural rubber gaskets and hoses in vehicles (mostly found in vehicles manufactured before 1992), although these tend to wear out naturally and most likely will have already been replaced with FKM, which is nonreactive to biodiesel. Biodiesel has been known to break down deposits of residue in the fuel lines where petrodiesel has been used.[3] As a result, fuel filters may become clogged with particulates if a quick transition to pure biodiesel is made. Therefore, it is recommended to change the fuel filters on engines and heaters shortly after first switching to a biodiesel blend.[citation needed]

Distribution
Biodiesel use and production are increasing rapidly. Fueling stations make biodiesel readily available to consumers across Europe, and increasingly in the USA and Canada. A growing number of transport fleets use it as an additive in their fuel. Biodiesel is often more expensive to purchase than petroleum diesel but this is expected to diminish due to economies of scale and agricultural subsidies versus the rising cost of petroleum as reserves are depleted.

Vehicular use and manufacturer acceptance
In 2005, DaimlerChrysler released Jeep Liberty CRD diesels from the factory into the American market with 5% biodiesel blends, indicating at least partial acceptance of biodiesel as an acceptable diesel fuel additive.[4] In 2007, DiamlerChrysler indicated intention to increase warranty coverage to 20% biodiesel blends if biofuel quality in the United States can be standardized.[5]

Railroad use
The British businessman Richard Branson's Virgin Voyager train, number 220007 Thames Voyager [6], billed as the world's first "biodiesel train" was converted to run on 80% petrodiesel and only 20% biodiesel, and it is claimed it will save 14% on direct emissions.

Aircraft use
Aircraft manufacturers are understandably even more cautious, but a test flight has been performed by an ex Soviet Aircraft (completely powered on biofuel);[7] testing has been announced by Rolls Royce plc, Air New Zealand and Boeing (one engine out of four on a Boeing 747);[8] and commercial passenger jet testing has also been announced[9] by Virgin Atlantic's Richard Branson.

The world's first biofuel-powered commercial aircraft took off from London's Heathrow Airport on February 24, 2008 and touched down in Amsterdam on a demonstration flight hailed as a first step towards "cleaner" flying. The "BioJet" fuel for this flight was produced by Seattle based Imperium Renewables, Inc.[10]

As a heating oil
Biodiesel can also be used as a heating fuel in domestic and commercial boilers, sometimes known as bioheat. Older furnaces may contain rubber parts that would be affected by biodiesel's solvent properties, but can otherwise burn biodiesel without any conversion required. Care must be taken at first, however, given that varnishes left behind by petrodiesel will be released and can clog pipes- fuel filtering and prompt filter replacement is required. Another approach is to start using biodiesel as blend, and decreasing the petroleum proportion over time can allow the varnishes to come off more gradually and be less likely to clog.

Thanks to its strong solvent properties, however, the furnace is cleaned out and generally becomes more efficient. A technical research paper [11] describes laboratory research and field trials project using pure biodiesel and biodiesel blends as a heating fuel in oil fired boilers. During the Biodiesel Expo 2006 in the UK, Andrew J. Robertson presented his biodiesel heating oil research from his technical paper and suggested that B20 biodiesel could reduce UK household CO2 emissions by 1.5 million tonnes per year


Readers, this article is to be continued....

• 0 komentar »

Ethanol vs. Biodiesel: Just the Facts
by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg, St. Louis, MO on 07. 4.06

Reader Jacob Varghese asked yesterday "what's the difference between ethanol and biodiesel? which one is better, cheaper..." While some of us responded "Well, that's the fundamental philosophical question of our day (or, at the very least, the $64,000 question)," we decided not to go there. Instead, here are some of the facts about ethanol and biodiesel, with a few thoughts on which on might be better, depending on your transportation needs.

What are they?

Ethanol is "an alcohol product produced from corn, sorghum, potatoes, wheat, sugar cane, even biomass such as cornstalks and vegetable waste. When combined with gasoline, it increases octane levels while also promoting more complete fuel burning that reduces harmful tailpipe emissions such as carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons." (Abengoa Bioenergy)

Biodiesel is "a domestic, renewable fuel for diesel engines derived from natural oils like soybean oil, and which meets the specifications of ASTM D 6751." Or, for those of you who want a more technical definition, it is "a fuel comprised of mono-alkyl esters of long chain fatty acids derived from vegetable oils or animal fats..." (National Biodiesel Board)

How are the produced?
According to the Renewable Fuels Association (the US ethanol trade organization), there are two processes for making ethanol: wet milling and dry milling. Each process is explained in detail on the RFA's site.

Biodiesel is made through a chemical process called transesterification "whereby the glycerin is separated from the fat or vegetable oil. The process leaves behind two products -- methyl esters (the chemical name for biodiesel) and glycerin (a valuable byproduct usually sold to be used in soaps and other products). (NBB)

Which one is better for the environment?
Both forms of biofuel have definite environmental advantages over petroleum-based gasoline and diesel fuel.

According to the RFA, "Ethanol contains 35% oxygen. Adding oxygen to fuel results in more complete fuel combustion, thus reducing harmful tailpipe emissions. Ethanol also displaces the use of toxic gasoline components such as benzene, a carcinogen. Ethanol is non-toxic, water soluble and quickly biodegradable."

Biodiesel, on the other hand, "is the only alternative fuel to have fully completed the health effects testing requirements of the Clean Air Act. The use of biodiesel in a conventional diesel engine results in substantial reduction of unburned hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, and particulate matter compared to emissions from diesel fuel. In addition, the exhaust emissions of sulfur oxides and sulfates (major components of acid rain) from biodiesel are essentially eliminated compared to diesel." (NBB)

Which biofuel should I use?
Unless you already own or plan to buy a vehicle with a diesel engine (which is no small feat these days), ethanol-blended gasoline is likely your best option for biofuel use. Biodiesel, however, could provide a great environmental benefit to trucking fleets, which consist almost entirely of vehicles with diesel engines.

If you're a do-it-yourselfer, though, biodiesel can be made at home -- a real DIYer can even make his/her own biodiesel reactor with open-source plans available on the Internet. Ryan Thibodaux, a political blogger, recorded his own efforts to build a reactor, buy diesel cars and actually start producing the stuff at his blog The Higher Pie

Still have questions?

A quick Google search can provide you with plenty of information on biofuels. Both the Renewable Fuels Association and the Biodiesel Board have tons of educational materials on their respective sites. And, as reader Mat pointed out, Wikipedia has extensive entries on ethanol and biodiesel.

UPDATE: In response to Mike's question below, Gristmill has a handy chart showing estimated fuel yields of certain crops. Those numbers look like they tend to favor ethanol

Biodiesel and ethanol is new issue for Indonesian. However, I think it is an alternative energy source aside from fossil diesel. Sooner or later, Indonesia has to think it when the fossil diesel resources are getting exhausted

• 0 komentar »