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Homegrown Biodiesel Behind “Magic Fuel Bus”

John Davis

magicfuelbusA high school science project has turned into a way for a North Carolina school to save money, save the environment and comply with a state law requiring biodiesel use.

This story from the Burke County (NC) News Herald says East Burke High School, located between Hickory and Morganton in North Carolina, is the home of science teacher Bob Smith and his Magic Fuel Bus team of juniors and seniors Kelly Triplett, Ethan Hull, Nathan Maltba, Nou Yang, Mucheng Yang and Porter Yang have built a biodiesel refinery:

…after spending three days a week afterschool on the project, the students presented Friday morning the results and implications of the project to school board members, local biodiesel experts and parents.

The team’s first two processors failed, but the current processor, a five-gallon reactor, has produced more than 80 gallons of biodiesel fuel, Triplett said…

Porter Yang said the team started its trials in October and began testing the fuel in November.

But the team’s first successful batch of biodiesel fuel wasn’t created until January.

“We were surprised, but excited,” Nou Yang said.

With the successful batches of biodiesel, the students set forth to test the fuel in the high school’s activity and yellow school buses beginning in February, Smith said.

Nou Yang said the buses, for two weeks each, used a diesel and biodiesel mix of 5 to 15 percent biodiesel.

The biodiesel managed to improve the buses’ mileage, created less pollution and there was less friction in the engine, Nou Yang said.

The test results led the students to recommend building a biodiesel manufacturing plant in order for the schools to save money and to comply with a new state law, Mucheng Yang said.

The state law, which went into effect this school year, requires diesel school buses to use at least 2 percent biodiesel, Hull said.

School officials say they are looking at putting in a refinery to turn the area’s waste cooking oil into a steady supply of biodiesel… and the Magic Fuel Bus team aims to be part of that effort.

Biodiesel

Biodiesel, Ethanol Make Saudis Nervous

John Davis

Renewable energy, including biodiesel and ethanol are making the big oil producing countries nervous… and that’s got to be a good thing.

This story in the New York Times quotes Saudi oil minister Ali Al-Naimi as trying to dismiss alternative energy, while praising non-renewable petroleum as “an enabler of progress and prosperity.” He cautioned that the current economic crisis — and the uncertainties over future oil consumption — could force producers to trim their supplies, and hence could cause a new price shock.

Mr. Naimi also offered his strongest public criticism against the drive for alternative fuels — which he referred to as “supplemental” energy — and the inconsistent policies of consuming countries. Although he never once mentioned either the United States or President Obama by name, these were clearly his targets.

But the readers of the Times aren’t buying this oil prince’s faulty logic. From the comments section of the article, I found that most people dismissed Al-Naimi’s argument almost as quickly as he dismissed the viability of biodiesel and ethanol.

From “Clif”:

When a seller is driven to praising his product the only thing it tells us is that he is looking to sell more of what he has to offer. The Saudis have far far more to lose from declining oil production than the world at large has to lose from any lack of flexibility in energy supplies.

From “Brennan”:

Pretty obvious he is going to try to scare people into using oil for centuries to come. The thing is right now it is supplemental for the most part but as technology increases his oil will basically not be worth anything because no one will really have large scale uses for it in the United States and a few other countries.

“T.Caine” said:

To me this is as unconvincing as it is unsurprising. Not that anyone can really blame him for making the pitch. It is only natural to fight for the survival of his country’s largest export and influx of capital, but that does not change the fact that oil is a finite resource and its use should begin declining.

Hmmm… nervous foreign oil producers worried that they’ll be replaced by American farmers. I like the sound of that!

Biodiesel, Ethanol, News

Ethanol Production Affects Meat Trading Patterns

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Al MussellBiofuels production in Canada will impact meat trading patterns according to research by Al Mussell, George Morris Centre, University of Guelph. He says that the increase in biofuels production will turn the country into an importer of grains instead of an exporter. Al was one of the speakers at the Transition To A Bio Economy Conference.

He says that as you develop an ethanol production system built on feed grains it will seriously impact feeding livestock. That will mean serious adjustments over time. He says that these trends take a while to work themselves out. But in the long run he says we should like the taste of Brazilian beef and pork.

You can listen to my interview with Al here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-mussell.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Energy, Ethanol, Farm Foundation, International

Poverty And Biofuels Production

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Tom HertelA very interesting presentation at our Farm Foundation Global Trade and Policy Issues conference had to do with the impact on poverty. Tom Hertel, Purdue University, was our presenter.

He says they conducted an international study of 16 developing countries and the impact of biofuels production on the poverty level. As he puts it, it’s a very complex issue. Most people he says think that just because food is scarce in low income countries that biofuels production from feedstocks would contribute to poverty but in fact, the opposite is true in some parts of the world like southeast Asia. However, in other parts of the world where the low income population is mostly urban, like South America, the opposite is true.

You can listen to my interview with Tom here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-hertel.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Energy, Farm Foundation, International

Biofuels Effects According To Stenholm

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Charles StenholmFormer Texas Congressman Charles Stenholm was the moderator for our second session here at the Farm Foundation Global Trade & Policy Issues conference. I don’t think you’ll find anyone more knowledgeable about the policy side of this discussion.

He says that it’s clear to everyone that the price of our basic commodities which was extremely beneficial to our producers has had a tendency to increase the price of food. He says that it’s had a major affect on our livestock producers. He thinks Congress has a difficult challenge in front of it. He’s all for alternative biofuels but he wonders about subsidizing biofuels for example. One thing he thinks we should have looked at is a counter cyclical program. We’ve heard it said before but he said it again, that the price of corn will be set by the price of oil.

You can listen to my interview with Mr. Stenholm here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-stenholm.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Energy, Farm Foundation

Technical Global Biofuels Analysis

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Thomas AlfstadProviding us with a “Technical Global Biofuels Analysis” here at the Farm Foundation Global Trade & Policy Issues conference was Thomas Alfstad, Brookhaven National Laboratory.

Thomas was on the program to speak about a technical global biofuels analysis.

He says that last year they completed a study on biofuels. They looked at the U.S. importing fuels to meet the RFS. He says their findings were that there are strong incentives for producers to expand production of biofuels. He says that biofuels producers may have short term concerns but that their findings should be encouraging for the long term.

You can listen to my interview with Thomas here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-alfstad.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Energy, Farm Foundation, International

Energy Outlook

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Michael SchaalMichael Schaal is with the Energy Information Administration which is part of the U. S. Dept. of Energy. He spoke early on the program at the Farm Foundation conference about the global outlook for energy.

He says they were actually looking at trends through 2030. He says that developing countries will be significantly increasing their fuel consumption which will be driven by the increase in the number of vehicles they have. All sorts of fuel production will be needed to meet this growing need. He says that with low world oil prices the production of biofuels is low and conversely, if we see higher oil prices then we’ll see greater production of biofuels. So the uncertainty of the price of oil is key to the development of biofuels. This is something all the speakers have mentioned today.

You can listen to my interview with Michael here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-schaal.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Audio, Energy, Farm Foundation, International

GM and Chrysler Given a Second Chance

gmlogoBoth Chrysler and General Motors (GM) reportedly did not meet the terms of their Federal loans but they will be given a second chance to restructure and survive. This news is admist General Motors Chief Executive Rick Wagoner, who led the company for nine years, stepping down at the request of the Obama administration and Chief Operating Officer Fritz Henderson taking over.

GM will be given sixty additional days of working capitol to meet the terms agreed and Chrysler will be given thirty days to work a deal with Fiat.

Both companies have said that bankruptcy would decrease sales because consumers wouldn’t buy a car from a company that might not be around to honor the warranty and provide service and spare parts. chrysler“Let me say this as plainly as I can. If you buy a car from Chrysler or General Motors, you will be able to get your car serviced and repaired just like always,” Obama said in a speech today. “Your warranty will be safe. In fact, it will be safer than it has ever been. Because starting today, the United States will stand behind your warranty.”

GM and Chrysler both produce many models of flexible fuel vehicles in model year 2009 and have promised to produce half their line as E85 compatible by 2012.

Miscellaneous

Live Coverage of Farm Foundation Conference – Archived

Chuck Zimmerman

I’m live covering the Farm Foundation Conference below. Feel free to comment. I’ll save it later when done. I’ll be off and on depending on when I need to take photos and do interviews on breaks.


Update: I’ve closed the session but it’s archived for you to “replay” if you’d like. I’ll be posting speaker interviews over the next several hours.

You can find photos from the conference here:
Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global & Trade Issues Photo Album

Farm Foundation

Biofuels Globally Topic of Farm Foundation Conference

Chuck Zimmerman

Farm Foundation Wally TynerToday and tomorrow I’ll be covering the Farm Foundation, Transition To A Bio Economy Conference: Global Trade and Policy Issues. Biofuels is the main topic of discussion.

Wally Tyner is an energy economist with the Dept. of Agricultural Economics at Purdue University. He’s one of the first speakers on the program. I was able to speak with him before things get started this afternoon here in Washington, DC.

Wally says Farm Foundation decided to host a series of conferences a couple years ago. There are to be five in all and this is the fourth one. You can find out information about them on the Farm Foundation website.

This conference will focus on biofuels from a global perspective with participation from the European Union and Brazil. We’ll hear some contrasting viewpoints since Wally says that the EU has taken a different approach to requiring biofuels than the US. In his presentation he’ll focus on cellulosic or second generation biofuels. The hope is that the conference will incite or promote discussion even though Farm Foundation itself doesn’t take positions. He says they believe they’ve accomplished the objective with the conferences so far.

The next one in the series will focus on extension and it’s role across the country in biofuels production. It will be held in Arkansas in June.

You can listen to my interview with Wally here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/farm-foundation/ff-global-09-tyner.mp3]

You can download the interview with this link (mp3).

Audio, Cellulosic, conferences, Energy, Farm Foundation, International