Can we reduce greenhouse gases with biofuels? Explore biofuels, the carbon cycle and potential impacts.
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Palm oil plantation, in Indonesia. Photo: Achmad Rabin Taim; Wikimedia Commons. |
From the standpoint of human-released carbon dioxide, other greenhouse gas emissions, and contributions to climate change biofuels have one large advantage over gasoline, diesel and other fossil fuels: The feedstocks for biofuels …
There are several benefits to using grasses, such as switchgrass and miscanthus, as biofuel feedstocks. They grow on marginal lands, prevent soil erosion better than row crops, and require fewer inputs. Read below about the advantages and drawbacks of grass crops.
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| Farmers use traditional farm equipment to grow and harvest switchgrass. Photo: Dennis Pennington, Bioenergy Educator, Michigan State University. |
Grasses are …
The process to make biodiesel involves a chemical reaction. This means that the biodiesel industry is a chemical industry. Those involved in making biodiesel must have a good understanding of the underlying chemistry to ensure they are making quality fuel in a safe manner.
Find these topics and many other related Farm Energy media resources at the Farm Energy Media archive.
Biodiesel is an alternative fuel for diesel engines that is produced by chemically reacting a vegetable oil …
Does biodiesel production impact food supplies? Learn about the “fuel versus food” debate, examine scenarios showing impacts and factors considered by scientists trying to unravel this complex question.
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| Harvesting soybeans in Nebraska. Photo: F. John Hay, Extension Educator, University of Nebraska-Lincoln Extension. |
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 …
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 …
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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 …
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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.
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| 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 …
