Biodiesel

While I applaud and support Mr. Pickens in his support of increasing the amount of electricity produced from wind power, a proven economically viable alternative. Biodiesel is the only alternative, carbon neutral transportation fuel with the potential to completely replace oil based transportation fuels. And we don't have to import it. For more information and further discussion, see the blog and forum at Earth Protect.

Tags: alternative, bio, biodiesel, energy, fuels

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Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 22, 2008 at 4:48pm: I would be willing to bet that you've used methanol or products with methanol in it and didn't even know it.
For more info on methanol read this: Methanol
For more info on ethanol go here: Ethanol
:); ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by mike fallwell on August 22, 2008 at 4:55pm: You must know it is much more toxic
not something you would want barrels of siting around the house.

And I don't think you would be wise to make it yourself.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 22, 2008 at 5:00pm: Yes, I am well aware of that and am not advocating it's wide spread use as a transportation fuel (although it is currently used as a fuel in certain class of race cars). I'm not even advocating the wide spread use of ethanol (which is also a poison that I partake of frequently). I am advocating the wide spread use of and conversion to biodiesel as a transportation fuel.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by mike fallwell on August 22, 2008 at 5:14pm: In the home?
Or garage?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 23, 2008 at 11:15am: In the form of Scotch Whiskey!; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Haveaclue on October 20, 2008 at 2:50pm: Would you be willing to discuss your distrust of methanol? I have been using it for 3 years with zero incidents. The only difference between methanol and ethanol is that methanol can kill a human if ingested in quantity. If only a little is ingested, breathed or absorbed in the skin, it can cause damage to your optic nerve. That's how people used to drink themselves "blind"

If proper precaution is taken, there will be no issues. I never handle the methanol. It is pumped directly from the drum to the mixing tank. I only use air powered diaphram pumps to transfer and mix the methanol. Once the methanol is mixed in with the oil, it becomes so diluted that the volatility is significantly reduced. You just don't want to breathe it, which is why proper ventilation is necessary.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 23, 2008 at 11:18am: Nancy,

It sounds like you're located in or near Colorado. One of the founders of Earth Protect is also from Colorado. I'm sure you're also aware that Vesta (the world's largest producer of wind turbines has built a plant in CO. and is planning another one.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 26, 2008 at 1:15pm: Citizenre looks very interesting.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Debra Goldenberg on August 23, 2008 at 2:36pm: Thanks for the link, Nancy! I have heard about this movie a lot lately, got to get it myself!

It's going to be up to consumers to bring these cars back, and stop responding to the marketing brainwashing from GM that US consumers only want big, powerful cars and SUVS.

If you have a couple of hours, you can watch Charlie Rose's interview about the new electric Volt car with the GM director Rick Wagoner and designer Robert Lutz:

http://www.charlierose.com/shows/2008/08/18/1/part-one-of-a-look-at...
http://www.charlierose.com/shows/2008/08/19/1/a-look-at-the-new-gm-...; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 23, 2008 at 2:52pm: The thing about electric cars is that they are not carbon neutral. You have to plug them in to charge the batteries with electricity that comes from a power plant that most likely burns coal or some other fossil fuel to generate the electricity that the cars use. That simply transfers the dumping of CO2 from the car to the power plant.

Biodiesel, on the other hand, is carbon neutral. And you can use it today in any vehicle with a diesel engine, without modification. Electric vehicles may have a future, but they won't help the environment much until they run on electricity produced from renewable, carbon neutral or carbon negative sources.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Debra Goldenberg on August 24, 2008 at 8:14pm: Plenty of people are working on the solar and wind power. Think how affordable that will be when enough people want that source for their cars, and create a mass market.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by James D Ballotti on August 25, 2008 at 6:41am: Bring on the electric car and power it from wind or solar. That would be wonderful. But, you're never going to be able to use electric to power for the trucks, trains, and freighters that move trade goods around the country and the world. Biodiesel can, and it can do it without any modifications to the current diesel engines used to power these vehicles.; ▶ Reply to This