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06-07-2005, 07:37 AM
Steering toward bio-diesel fuel
Across state, it's popular for school buses
June 1, 2005
BY NATE TRELA
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
The fuel of the future may be sitting in your cupboard or the grease trap at McDonald's.
With gas prices in the stratosphere, a growing number of communities are looking at bio-diesel, a fuel made from vegetable oil or animal fats that can be used alone or blended with petroleum-based diesel and used in diesel engines.
Advocates say bio-diesel could help struggling farmers, clean the skies and lessen U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
But critics say the fuel's benefits are overstated, it costs more than traditional diesel -- although tax credits are narrowing the gap -- and it cannot be used in strong concentrations without voiding vehicle warranties.
Gail Frahm, executive director of the Michigan Soybean Production Committee, said using B2 -- which is 2% bio-diesel and 98% petroleum-based diesel -- helps lubricate engines.
At a concentration of B20, there is a measurable reduction in hazardous emissions -- and the exhaust often smells like french fries.
Ann Arbor has been at the forefront of bio-diesel usage, and Frahm says the fuel is quietly finding its way into the tanks of vehicles and equipment owned by a handful of state agencies, counties and cities.
Public schools are among its heaviest users.
At least 35 districts in Michigan use a blend of bio-diesel in their buses, ranging from B5 to B30.
Plymouth-Canton Community Schools was one of the first to adopt it in 2002, and it now uses a blend of nearly 20% bio-diesel in all 140 buses. The district orders 15,000 gallons roughly every two weeks, and the fuel costs about 2.5 cents more per gallon than petroleum-based diesel after the tax credits are applied.
Melvin Latnie Jr., the district's director of transportation, says it has been about three years since anyone has said the district's buses stink.
"I used to get three to five complaints a week, but they just stopped," he said.
Not everyone is sold on bio-diesel. As part of an ongoing look at alternative fuels and other ways to reduce emissions, SMART (the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation) has considered using bio-diesel.
But Marvin Perkins, the agency's director of maintenance, says it's hard to justify the extra costs of the fuel, especially when he found it would void the warranties on the systems' buses.
"We want to use the wheel, but we don't want to be the person who invents it," said Jay Lamky, SMART's technical coordinator.
No bio-diesel plants are in Michigan, but Richard Vande Vusse, president of Gladstone-based Ag Solutions, says he expects the company to have its first plant operational by July 30.
"I already have people calling, asking when we're going to be in production and if they can have all of our capacity," he said.
Kim Mahrle, the corporate secretary for Manchester-based Wacker Oil, one of the first distributors of bio-diesel in Michigan, said demand is growing, but it's still not enough to entice many companies to produce it; when that happens, the price will come down.
Frahm said three other companies are looking at making bio-diesel in the state. Macomb County will give the fuel a try this year, committing in May to use 1,000 gallons of B20 a week in 10 vehicles.
Chief highway engineer Robert Hoepfner says the county Road Commission will monitor the test vehicles before deciding if it will make a complete switch. After a tax credit, the fuel will cost about 8 cents a gallon more than diesel.
The pilot program is also a subtle nod to a group looking at building a plant in Macomb County.
Don Morandini, deputy director for the county's planning and economic development department, says bringing a plant in would help agribusiness and add a new type of manufacturing to the county.
But Don Anair, a vehicles engineer from the Union of Concerned Scientists, isn't as bullish on bio-diesel.
While the fuel reduces many hazardous emissions, he says an engine running it spews 10% to 15% more nitrogen oxide, a key component of smog.
"It's not a silver bullet," he said.
Anair also noted that no vehicle manufacturer has given the go-ahead to using 100% bio-diesel in its engines.
Still, at least 18 states -- including Michigan -- are considering legislation this year that would encourage -- and in some cases mandate -- the use of bio-diesel.
State Rep. Neal Nitz, R-Baroda, has proposed requiring all diesel in the state to be B2 starting in 2007.
But the requirement would only go into effect if manufacturers in the state can produce at least 12 million gallons of bio-diesel a year.
To produce that much fuel, the oil would have to be extracted from 8.4 million bushels of soybeans -- an eighth of what the state produces.
The oil is often thrown away as a by-product when soybeans are processed. It could be saved for bio-diesel with little added cost.
Nitz says he thinks it's possible to replace a major portion of the nation's diesel fuel with bio-diesel.
A study by Oak Ridge National Laboratory found that bio-fuels -- including bio-diesel and ethanol -- could meet about 30% of America's transportation fuel needs.
Vande Vusse was skeptical, however, noting that the need for diesel increases about 1 billion gallons a year, and he doubted it would be possible just to keep pace with that growth.
"It's always going to be an additive or a boutique fuel," Vande Vusse said. "I wish this would be the solution for our entire energy problem, but it's only going to be one of many potential solutions -- and a minor one at that."
Contact NATE TRELA at 586-469-8087 or trela@freepress.com.
Web source: http://www.freep.com/money/autonews/biodiesel1e_20050601.htm
Across state, it's popular for school buses
June 1, 2005
BY NATE TRELA
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
The fuel of the future may be sitting in your cupboard or the grease trap at McDonald's.
With gas prices in the stratosphere, a growing number of communities are looking at bio-diesel, a fuel made from vegetable oil or animal fats that can be used alone or blended with petroleum-based diesel and used in diesel engines.
Advocates say bio-diesel could help struggling farmers, clean the skies and lessen U.S. dependence on foreign oil.
But critics say the fuel's benefits are overstated, it costs more than traditional diesel -- although tax credits are narrowing the gap -- and it cannot be used in strong concentrations without voiding vehicle warranties.
Gail Frahm, executive director of the Michigan Soybean Production Committee, said using B2 -- which is 2% bio-diesel and 98% petroleum-based diesel -- helps lubricate engines.
At a concentration of B20, there is a measurable reduction in hazardous emissions -- and the exhaust often smells like french fries.
Ann Arbor has been at the forefront of bio-diesel usage, and Frahm says the fuel is quietly finding its way into the tanks of vehicles and equipment owned by a handful of state agencies, counties and cities.
Public schools are among its heaviest users.
At least 35 districts in Michigan use a blend of bio-diesel in their buses, ranging from B5 to B30.
Plymouth-Canton Community Schools was one of the first to adopt it in 2002, and it now uses a blend of nearly 20% bio-diesel in all 140 buses. The district orders 15,000 gallons roughly every two weeks, and the fuel costs about 2.5 cents more per gallon than petroleum-based diesel after the tax credits are applied.
Melvin Latnie Jr., the district's director of transportation, says it has been about three years since anyone has said the district's buses stink.
"I used to get three to five complaints a week, but they just stopped," he said.
Not everyone is sold on bio-diesel. As part of an ongoing look at alternative fuels and other ways to reduce emissions, SMART (the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation) has considered using bio-diesel.
But Marvin Perkins, the agency's director of maintenance, says it's hard to justify the extra costs of the fuel, especially when he found it would void the warranties on the systems' buses.
"We want to use the wheel, but we don't want to be the person who invents it," said Jay Lamky, SMART's technical coordinator.
No bio-diesel plants are in Michigan, but Richard Vande Vusse, president of Gladstone-based Ag Solutions, says he expects the company to have its first plant operational by July 30.
"I already have people calling, asking when we're going to be in production and if they can have all of our capacity," he said.
Kim Mahrle, the corporate secretary for Manchester-based Wacker Oil, one of the first distributors of bio-diesel in Michigan, said demand is growing, but it's still not enough to entice many companies to produce it; when that happens, the price will come down.
Frahm said three other companies are looking at making bio-diesel in the state. Macomb County will give the fuel a try this year, committing in May to use 1,000 gallons of B20 a week in 10 vehicles.
Chief highway engineer Robert Hoepfner says the county Road Commission will monitor the test vehicles before deciding if it will make a complete switch. After a tax credit, the fuel will cost about 8 cents a gallon more than diesel.
The pilot program is also a subtle nod to a group looking at building a plant in Macomb County.
Don Morandini, deputy director for the county's planning and economic development department, says bringing a plant in would help agribusiness and add a new type of manufacturing to the county.
But Don Anair, a vehicles engineer from the Union of Concerned Scientists, isn't as bullish on bio-diesel.
While the fuel reduces many hazardous emissions, he says an engine running it spews 10% to 15% more nitrogen oxide, a key component of smog.
"It's not a silver bullet," he said.
Anair also noted that no vehicle manufacturer has given the go-ahead to using 100% bio-diesel in its engines.
Still, at least 18 states -- including Michigan -- are considering legislation this year that would encourage -- and in some cases mandate -- the use of bio-diesel.
State Rep. Neal Nitz, R-Baroda, has proposed requiring all diesel in the state to be B2 starting in 2007.
But the requirement would only go into effect if manufacturers in the state can produce at least 12 million gallons of bio-diesel a year.
To produce that much fuel, the oil would have to be extracted from 8.4 million bushels of soybeans -- an eighth of what the state produces.
The oil is often thrown away as a by-product when soybeans are processed. It could be saved for bio-diesel with little added cost.
Nitz says he thinks it's possible to replace a major portion of the nation's diesel fuel with bio-diesel.
A study by Oak Ridge National Laboratory found that bio-fuels -- including bio-diesel and ethanol -- could meet about 30% of America's transportation fuel needs.
Vande Vusse was skeptical, however, noting that the need for diesel increases about 1 billion gallons a year, and he doubted it would be possible just to keep pace with that growth.
"It's always going to be an additive or a boutique fuel," Vande Vusse said. "I wish this would be the solution for our entire energy problem, but it's only going to be one of many potential solutions -- and a minor one at that."
Contact NATE TRELA at 586-469-8087 or trela@freepress.com.
Web source: http://www.freep.com/money/autonews/biodiesel1e_20050601.htm