Energy life cycle analysis (EgLCA), also popularly known as “energy balance,” accounts for the amount and type of energy used in the production of a fuel and compares that to the amount of energy contained in the resulting fuel.
We prefer the term “energy life cycle analysis” over “energy balance” because the term “energy balance” could mislead people into thinking that the input and output energy should be balanced, or equal. Because EgLCA is usually concerned with the input …
Rudolf Diesel invented the diesel engine in the 1890s. From the beginning, this engine could run on a variety of fuels, including vegetable oil. In 1900, one of the new diesel engines featured at the Paris Exposition was powered by peanut oil. However, because cheap petroleum fuels were easily available, few people were interested in alternatives (Pahl, 2005, pp. 18-22).
As early as the 1930s, there was interest in splitting the fatty acids from the glycerin in …
|
|
|
Cotton harvest. Photo: Kimberly Vardeman; Wikimedia Commons. |
Learn how GMO’s are used in bioenergy systems, and why they are controversial in the sustainability debate.
Genetic engineering is being used and tested in virtually every aspect of bioenergy production, including crops, bacteria, yeasts, and catalysts. For example, researchers are trying to genetically engineer plants that grow faster, have high sugar or starch content, contain more cellulose …
Oil separation, the extraction of oil from seeds or plant parts, is accomplished by mechanical pressing, sometimes followed by chemical extraction. Mechanical pressing alone does not remove all the oil from the seed. Chemical extraction uses a solvent to remove the remaining oil that mechanical press cannot. Chemical, mechanical, and solvent extraction are terms accepted and understood by the industry.
Small biodiesel businesses will likely extract oil from seeds using a mechanical method – a press that squeezes the …
 |
|
Most farm operations currently depend on fossil fuel use. Photo: Jeff Piper. |
Learn many strategies for improving energy efficiency, and the cheapest and easiest way to reduce energy costs on the farm.
In the last few years, interest in alternative energy and energy conservation has skyrocketed due to unstable …
…
The “Mustard Bug” is not a pest, but a VW that runs on biodiesel made from mustard oil at the University of Idaho where they are researching mustard oil’s energy potential for biodiesel fuel.
|
|
| Mustard flowers. Photo: Riyaas; Wikimedia Commons. |
Mustard seed oil is not currently a common biodiesel feedstock, but because it has the potential to be a cheaper feedstock than the two most common oilseeds …
Biodiesel that leaves the production plant in good condition can become unacceptable during distribution without proper care and attention. Biodiesel can degrade due to oxidation, contact with water, and/or microbial activity.
In general, biodiesel will degrade more quickly than petro-diesel. In one sense, this is a good thing: a biodiesel spill will biodegrade quickly and not cause as many environmental problems as a petro-diesel spill. Nevertheless, both fuels will eventually degrade, and the same good housekeeping practices that apply …
Sweet sorghum can be used the the production of biofuels in two ways. The stalk and seed are used directly for biomass energy and their high sugar content allows them to be fermented to make ethanol.
 |
| Sweet sorghum. Photo: Dennis Pennington, Bioenergy Educator, Michigan State University. |
Sweet sorghum was first introduced into the United States in 1852. Isaac Hedges called it …
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) is a native warm-season grass that is a leading biomass crop in the United States. More than 70 years of experience with switchgrass as a hay and forage crop suggest switchgrass will be productive and sustainable on rain-fed marginal land east of the 100th meridian. Long-term plot trials and farm-scale studies in the Great Plains and plot trials in the …
