Alternative Alternatives For Alternative Fuels Essay

Since biodiesel is made entirely from vegetable oil or animal fats, it is renewable and biodegradable. Biodiesel also contains very little sulfur, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and metals. Petroleum-derived diesel fuels can contain up to 20% polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. For an equivalent number of carbon atoms, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are up to three orders of magnitude more soluble in water than straight chain aliphatics.

Anything containing oil has been an increasing problem to the environment and to people. The toxicants that the oil produce harms people with their health. In the film Fuel, the director Josh Tickell talks about how crops can produce fuel, which produces cleaner air and is safer for the public. There are also other ways that Biofuel could be produced, such as adding human waste onto algae. The way that society utilizes oil is hurting the world, which in fact is affecting the human population and environment, but people only realize it until it is too late. With biofuel people would not be in danger and it could be produced without struggling to find oil.

Over the past decade the awareness of non-renewable resources has grown. A green energy moment has begun. People are more conscious of where things come from and how they impact the earth. Gasoline is a non-renewable resource and should be considered humanity’s most challenging problem because there is a limited amount of it on earth. Reducing the consumption of gasoline is important because humans are dependent on gasoline, it is becoming harder to harvest from the earth, and it is not a renewable resource meaning there is a finite supply of gasoline.

Bio-fuels are also known as agro fuels. They are a renewable source of energy made from animal and vegetable material and a large portion of municipal solid and industrial waste. Bio-fuels are major sources of fuel from biomass. Biomass is any organic material stored in the tissues of living plants and animals. Plants generate their energy from the solar power using the chlorophyll in the leaves to create tissue from water in the ground and carbon dioxide in the air and animals take their energy from plants either by directly eating plants or by eating other animals that have eaten plants. Even though biofuels are sources of energy obtained from renewable resources, the positive effects to the environment are far outweighed by the negative effects to the environment from the production of these biofuels. Our need for energy is increasing day by day for heating, cooling, cooking, driving, etc. One of the major reasons for the development of bio-fuels is the act that fossil fuel oil reserves are limited. Based on total worldwide oil reserves of 143.1 thousand million tons of oil (end 2001) and a worldwide oil consumption rate of 3510.6 million tons, it is estimated that the oil reserves will probably last until 2044. Also, there has been increasing concerns regarding global emissions of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide and nitrous oxides. Biodiesel, which is the most popular form of bio-fuel, is used in any diesel

The process to turn this kerogen into usable oil would cost tremendous amounts of money (Rhodes). With the threat of oil running out so soon, this raises concern for the world’s infrastructure, which heavily relies on oil. Even our food “runs” on oil. Soybeans grown and harvested in Brazil need to be transported by trucks, ships, airplanes, and trains. The equipment used for harvesting those soybeans also rely on oil (Rhodes). Ethanol is alcohol made from the fermentation of sugars by yeasts. It is an alternative to petroleum, as it can be derived from sources such as corn and plant sugars. Ethanol is usually derived from corn, barely, or wheat. The grain is first milled, then fermented with yeast to turn the starches of the grain into alcohol, then distilled and turned into fuel (West). Now, most gasoline found in the U.S has ethanol in it (“U.S. Energy”). Biodiesel is another alternative to petroleum, and it can be generated from vegetable oils, animal fats, recycled restaurant grease, and even algae. In fact, algae could be 10 or even 100 times more productive than traditional petroleum (“Algal Biofuels”). Although this seems like a likely solution to reducing petroleum usage and cutting down carbon admissions, this proves false. Mass amounts of farming can cause major damage to

A biofuels is a fuel that is produced through biological processes, such as agriculture rather than a fuel produced by geological processes. Hence a biofuel is a fuel which is gained from the living matter. A biofuel is a hydrocarbon that is made from a living organism hence we humans end up using this to power something. In a short amount of time, if a hydrogen fuel is produced from organic matter hence this is known as a biofuel being produced. Biodiesel is an fuel which is similar to fossil diesel. Therefore biofuel is any fuel from which energy is gained through a process of biological carbon fixation. Biodiesel can be produced from vegetable oil, animal oil/fats and waste cooking oils. A well known process used to convert these oils

The environment is a hotly debated topic in today's society. Some of the subtopics that are going to be discussed are going to be those related to the way technology is changing, what industries are doing to help prevent further pollution, some of the methods used in paper recycling, and some discussion of renewable energy sources. For the most part, this section of the research paper, unlike the other sections, is going to attempt to discuss some of the ways the public has been dealing with, and are finding new ways to deal with environmental problems that we are presently facing.

Biodiesel was synthesized in order In lab 6, the toxicity of the biofuels was measured to determine which fuel was most toxic and degrading for human life. The toxicity level of each fuel is extremely important in determining which biodiesel is most suitable for the environment since Life . A form of measurement of toxicity is the LD50 or the amount f a toxic agent that is sufficient to kill 50 percent of the population of animals usually within a certain time.* The toxicity will vary depending on the size The data measured from the toxicity of each biofuel will determine which is most suitable.The amount of biofuel and . Though the germination of a set number of radish seeds with a fixed concentration of biofuel a determination of which one is most lethal for life was determined. In lab 7, the viscosity of the biofuels were determine to see which one would be most efficient for modern machinery use and . The more viscous a solution is, the faster it will travel to start an engine. This makes a care more efficient because it takes less energy to start and will

The automobile industry is constantly being revolutionized through new technology resulting in a fuel concept for consumer vehicles. Although these new alternative fuels are a break-through for the automobile industry, where do they stand in comparison to our conventional vehicles? This paper will address this issue by asking: What are the environmental and economic benefits and disadvantages of alternative-fueled cars compared to conventional cars?

A triglyceride consists of a glycerine molecule as its base that has three long chains of fatty acids attached. The nature of these fatty acids can affect the characteristics of biodiesel produced. During the esterification process the triglyceride reacts with alcohol in the presence of a catalyst which is commonly a strong alkaline like sodium hydroxide or potassium hydroxide. The alcohol reacts with fatty acids to form biodiesel and crude glycerol. The glycerine is denser in comparison to biodiesel and they are separated by gravity with glycerine settling to the bottom of the reaction vessel. Sometimes, a centrifuge can be used to separate the two molecules quicker. After glycerine and biodiesel are separated, the excess alcohol produced in each stage is removed with a flash evaporation process or by distillation. However, in both cases the alcohol is reused because it can be recovered with the aid of distillation equipment.

Biodiesel as it name depicts is a substitute for diesel and in its purified form it can be used as a fuel for vehicles. It is made from oilseeds, vegetable oil and sometimes from animal fats. Bioethanol is used instead of petrol; it is very useful now days as the demand for petrol and its price are equally high. Fulfilling that high demand of petrol by biofuel form of bioethanol has raised many questions and it has brought many people on streets because bioethanol is made from cereal based and starch crops. The heavy use of these ingredients has raised the prices of food to an uncontrollable extent. Biogas is a form of substitute for natural gas

Fossil fuels, the main fuel for firing power stations for electricity, heating homes, and providing fuel for transport, have been used for many years. Despite their relative inexpensiveness, fossil fuels have major drawbacks. They introduce a myriad of negative implications including environmental degradation, global warming, acid rain, health problems, and ecosystem destruction. Even though fossil fuels are cheaper today than renewable sources of energy, it is well worth spending the extra money on these more environmentally friendly types of energy. After all, who wants to live on an unhealthy planet?

“Biodiesel is a fuel that is produced from seed oil such as sunflower seeds or soybeans, fats from vegetables and animals and microorganisms such as algae”. (http://www.greenchoices.cornell.edu/energy/biofuels/) Biodiesel has no petroleum, but petroleum blends with biodiesel can be made where petroleum engines can run on. There are a variety of blends that can be made with biodiesels and its efficiency depends on its blend. “B20, B5, and B100 are the most common blends used today”. (http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/transportation/afvs/biodiesel.html)

What are biofuels? A biofuel is a liquid, solid or any gaseous fuel derived from organic matter such as waste plant and animal matter. (Biofuels Assosiation Australia , 2014) Did you know wood was the first form of biofuel ever used? Biofuels are commonly referred to as first generation biofuels, because they are produced from a large variety of organic materials such as starch, sugary plants, corn, wheat, sugar cane, soybeans, and vegetable oils, using conventional technology. The main biofuels include bioethanol and biodiesel. Bioethanol is used as a replacement for petrol, whilst biodiesel is used as a replacement for diesel (greenfacts, 2014). Biofuels maintain an immense growth area around the world and have a vital mrole to play in displacing fossil fuels. Due to environmental concerns and volatility of oil supply, the development of alternative fuels is crucial to the future of the transport sector. A potential biofuel that can be of great assistence in the future is 2, 5- Dimethylfuran (C6H8O) which can be used as an alternative to gasoline (fossil fuel).

Western countries have become highly dependent on petroleum products to grow and process the food needed to support the nutritional requirements of its citizens. Gasoline and diesel fuels are needed to fertilize, till, plant, and control pests until the crops reach maturity (Prasad). Petroleum fuels are needed to bring agriculture products to food manufacturers and markets. Fertilizers, modified seeds, and pest control rely heavily on petroleum products. If petroleum fertilizers alone were eliminated, the yield per acre for corn alone would fall by 433%. What most people fail to realize is that the loss of fossil fuels would be devastating to contemporary farming methods, because renewable energy cannot substitute for the organic chemicals derived from oil and natural gas.