Gregg Anderson
Boston in the summer: Fenway Park, warm weather and … home heating? Though it may not fit with summer the way swimsuits and sunscreen do, Bioheat fuel is certainly a hot topic in the Northeast. The United States uses 6.7 billion gallons of No. 2 heating oil annually. The mid-Atlantic and Northeast states account for 88 percent, or 5.5 billion gallons, of that volume, so a delegation of more than two dozen industry stakeholders from around the nation headed to Boston to see exactly what this means for biodiesel. In a three-day whirlwind of meetings, press events and demonstrations, we absorbed as much Bioheat information as possible. The group hit Massachusetts for the Biodiesel & Bioheat Conference and additional collaboration meetings. We heard from industry experts and learned how biodiesel is having a positive impact on the home heating industry. We learned Bioheat fuel is the industry-accepted term for 2 to 5 percent blends of pure biodiesel blended with conventional high or low sulfur home heating oil.
Does your furnace really care what kind of oil you burn in it? I’d like to see more biodiesel used in heating homes and businesses, and this article will give you ideas on the subject, good reading. Also see: http://domesticfuel.com/2010/06/15/new-alliance-to-promote-biodiesel-heating-oil/
In Coquitlam, British Columbia, road construction crews used B10 in their equipment for a major highway improvement project relocating a sewer line. photo: FPInnovations
Funded in part by Natural Resources Canada’s National Renewable Diesel Demonstration Initiative, forest research institute FPInnovations just completed a multiphase investigation looking at the performance of biodiesel blends in various off-road applications.
A comprehensive study of biodiesel blends in some of the harshest off-road applications is wrapping up in Canada, and the verdict is good. The undertaking is one of several projects initiated and funded by Natural Resources Canada’s National Renewable Diesel Demonstration Initiative, a program launched in December 2008 to address industry and end-user questions about biodiesel use by demonstrating how it will perform under Canadian real-world conditions as a federal B2 mandate nears.
I have read many articles that advance the theory that biodiesel is actually more lubricating to the engine, makes the equipment last longer, and burns with less soot buildup, reducing engine maintenance. But I have also heard of cold weather problems. Hope we learn much from this testing.
Photo from: http://www.ecofriend.org/entry/adios-petrol-well-power-ourselves-with-homemade-biodiesel/
Despite industry challenges, there are many biodiesel users in the U.S. To help showcase a few of them to the world, the NBB recently revamped its Biodiesel Users Web page. The new “Fueling Change: Biodiesel User Stories” page ( www.biodiesel.org/resources/users ) features various categories of biodiesel users, including: Airports Passenger cars Businesses Pro-sports Construction Schools Government Utilities Bioheat he site has a “featured user” section that will rotate. Most of the profiles include updated information on biodiesel use, quotes from users about how they like the fuel, and photographs. Check out the story about the New York parks and recreation department in this section for an example. Do you know someone who should be featured on the site? Send background and contact information to jenna@rosemedia.biz.
I hope readers of BiodieselNow.com will contribute to the NBB users page. The world needs to know that biodiesel isn’t some crackpot idea, it is real fuel used by real people in some very nice cars, trucks, and tractors.
[Pictured (left to right): Larry Adams, Aloha Petroleum director of sales and marketing; Jenna King of Pacific Biodiesel; and Reggie Kamei Jr., Aloha Petroleum commercial fuel marketing manager.]
HONOLULU -- Aloha Petroleum Ltd. recently donated several hundred gallons of B20 biodiesel fuel to Marine Corps Base Hawaii, which is testing its use in tactical vehicles. The B20 demonstration project is the first in Hawaii involving military vehicles and is expected to last up to a year. "Aloha Petroleum already supplies B20 biodiesel to several private companies and government agencies in Hawaii. Our customers have been pleased with the results and we think the military will be, too," said Larry Adams, Aloha Petroleum director of sales and marketing. The B20 is being tested in select tactical, nondeployed vehicles operating on the base.
We have heard of some military aircraft testing bio-jet fuel, very similar to biodiesel, but here is a military application a little more down to earth, great idea to give out free samples. Smart.