Could this bring back the B727/DC-10/B707, etc?

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It's more than a simple impossibility in terms of coast to keep
those old buzzards in the air, but this could make them more
environmentally friendly. BTW.. Is the MD-11 a diesel based or Jet-A
based plane? Also, the L1011?

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/e...12145499c.html

Look what's cooking in place of gasoline

By Blair Anthony Robertson -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Wednesday, October 27, 2004

There came a time in Robert Robinson's life not so long ago when he
was fed up with the nation's reliance on foreign oil, with the whole
gas-guzzling, what-me-worry mentality that seems so pervasive in
California's car culture.

So he paid $1,900 for a 20-year-old diesel Mercedes sedan - and began
emitting the lip-smacking aroma of french fries wherever his travels
took him.

That's because he's running his car on used vegetable oil that only
days before made french fries and onion rings sizzle. He and a small
but growing network of motorists are responding to rising gas prices
and dependance on foreign oil by steering clear of the pump
altogether.

These days, Robinson's commitment to Mother Earth involves picking up
discarded cooking oil from several local restaurants, filtering out
the bits of food through a burlap sack and making a few other
technical adjustments before filling up his tank.

"I'm showing that we don't have to pump it out of the ground and
import it from foreign countries," said Robinson, a 46-year-old
multimedia producer from Sacramento. "Our farmers can grow it for us -
and I hope that's what will happen."

While Robinson motors along using pure vegetable oil, most people in
the movement use what's known as "biodiesel," plant or animal oil that
has gone through a chemical process to separate the glycerin, often by
using a combination of methanol and a small amount of lye.

Biodiesel can be used in diesel cars and trucks - less than 4 percent
of vehicles on U.S. roads - without modifying the engine. In fact,
biodiesel is a return to the vision Rudolph Diesel had more than a
century ago when he ran his engine on peanut oil.

Although biodiesel is a growth industry in the United States, its
future is unclear. Those who run their cars on it say the government
hindered its acceptance by failing to subsidize the price and creating
a bureaucratic gantlet.

What's more, the biodiesel movement itself is often divided between
those who brew their own batches and the more business-oriented
operators who adhere to strict national standards they say protect
both the engine and the environment.

Tod Kershaw is a case in point. He initially was reluctant to speak
publicly about his foray into biodiesel because he makes it at home -
and he's not paying the 24.4 cents per gallon federal road tax nearly
all other motorists pay.

To clear his conscience, he says he plans to start paying the tax by
tallying his mileage and writing the government a check when he files
his taxes in April.

His diesel Mercedes, by the way, smells like egg rolls, probably
because he gets most of his used oil from nearby Asian restaurants. "I
like the way it smells," he said. "I always get the oil all over
myself, and my dogs lick up whatever I spill."

Kershaw, 38, who is completing a master's degree in transportation
technology from the University of California, Davis, does not see
biodiesel as the answer to the nation's energy woes.

"I use biodiesel to get myself around town and to get people to talk
about the issue," he said. "To me, it is more of a symbolic thing and
a way to soothe our consciences. But it's not an answer. We need less
sprawl, more bicycles, less driving - things like that."

Scores of people running their cars on vegetable oil or biodiesel in
the Sacramento area can trace their know-how to an encounter with
Steve Bash, a 48-year-old Fair Oaks resident who gives frequent talks
on biodiesel basics.

"The biggest issue is education," he said. "Most people don't even
know a car can run on vegetable oil."

Bash says the government could help by lowering hurdles for biodiesel
users, including the requirement to have a rendering license to
transport used cooking oil and a license to make biodiesel. The tax
issue also keeps many home brewers underground, fearful of a stiff
fine from the government.

"The problem is they are applying diesel regulations to biodiesel,"
Bash said. "It seems like the government doesn't know how to handle it
yet, so they are preventing it from coming about."

Just last Friday, President Bush signed into law a federal biodiesel
tax incentive that makes the price of biodiesel more competitive with
regular diesel.

Currently, biodiesel costs about $3.60 a gallon, according to SaraHope
Smith, who runs BioFuel Oasis in Berkeley.

"I was just looking at our taxes today and over 60 cents of our price
per gallon is for taxes that we're paying on this fuel," Smith said
Thursday. Her company has been selling biodiesel in 5-gallon
containers for nearly a year and will open its first biodiesel pump
Nov. 13.

With similar businesses cropping up across California, the state's Air
Resources Board is starting to take a closer look. There are about 300
biodiesel filling stations throughout the country, with more expected
to open in the coming months (for a list of stations, visit
www.biodiesel. org and click on "Buying Biodiesel").

"It's on our radar screen. We are waiting to see how popular it gets,"
said Gennett Paauwe, an Air Resources Board spokeswoman. She says
biodiesel users who fail a roadside emissions test could be subject to
penalties. The fine for a second violation is $1,800, she said.

"Biodiesel uncontrolled without an after-market trap on the vehicle
can actually increase air pollution - and we're not going to have
that," Paauwe said. "It's a good thing that we are getting away from
foreign oil. But the folks doing the home brew could be doing two
things: increasing air pollution and, if they have a vehicle still
under warranty, they have voided the warranty by using biodiesel."

Emissions for properly made biodiesel are far easier on the
environment than petroleum diesel, according to a variety of experts,
because carbon monoxide and sulfur oxide are greatly reduced.

And while biodiesel does produce more particulate matter, those
particulates are generally less toxic than those from unleaded
gasoline, according to advocates.

The burgeoning biodiesel market can't help but collide with
grass-roots veggie oil advocates. The National Biodiesel Board, for
instance, is concerned that home brewers could hurt the movement if
poorly made fuel causes problems and attracts negative publicity.

"Fuel is one of the most regulated commodities in the United States,"
said Jenna Higgins, a spokeswoman for the board, a trade association
started by the soybean industry. "People who make their own biodiesel,
chances are they are breaking the law in one way or the other. If they
are driving on public roads, they are probably not paying taxes. And
quality is such an important issue."

But Robinson and other veggie oil advocates say such criticism is
overblown. "The great thing about biodiesel is that anybody can do it.
I see that as a good thing for the consumer," he said.


BL.
- --
Brad Littlejohn | Email:
Unix Systems Administrator, |
Web + NewsMaster, BOFH.. Smeghead! | http://www.sbcglobal.net/~tyketto
PGP: 1024D/E319F0BF 6980 AAD6 7329 E9E6 D569 F620 C819 199A E319 F0BF

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"A Guy Called Tyketto" wrote in message
. com...
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It's more than a simple impossibility in terms of coast to keep
those old buzzards in the air, but this could make them more
environmentally friendly. BTW.. Is the MD-11 a diesel based or Jet-A
based plane? Also, the L1011?

I assume you're joking.

"A Guy Called Tyketto" wrote in message
. com...
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Hash: SHA1


It's more than a simple impossibility in terms of coast to keep
those old buzzards in the air, but this could make them more
environmentally friendly. BTW.. Is the MD-11 a diesel based or Jet-A
based plane? Also, the L1011?

I assume you're joking.

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Hash: SHA1

Ted Ng wrote:

"A Guy Called Tyketto" wrote in message
. com...
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1


It's more than a simple impossibility in terms of coast to keep
those old buzzards in the air, but this could make them more
environmentally friendly. BTW.. Is the MD-11 a diesel based or Jet-A
based plane? Also, the L1011?

I assume you're joking.

No joke. I'm only relaying the article, and asking if this is
even remotely possible.

BL.
- --
Brad Littlejohn | Email:
Unix Systems Administrator, |
Web + NewsMaster, BOFH.. Smeghead! | http://www.sbcglobal.net/~tyketto
PGP: 1024D/E319F0BF 6980 AAD6 7329 E9E6 D569 F620 C819 199A E319 F0BF

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JgwWP+VBDRlUfUK935J7jmQ=
=VPQO
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bio diesel.

Montreal has had a few biodiesel buses running.

Aircraft run on a much purer petrol than diesel. It needs to be very clean as
well as very "concentrated" (eg: how much energy releases per kilo of fuel
you're carrying).

bio diesel.

Montreal has had a few biodiesel buses running.

Aircraft run on a much purer petrol than diesel. It needs to be very clean as
well as very "concentrated" (eg: how much energy releases per kilo of fuel
you're carrying).