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Vanderbilt University is the recipient of a $100,000 grant from Japanese auto components supplier, DENSO Corporation to put in a state-of-the-art biodiesel tester.

This news story from Vanderbilt has more details:

Beginning in the fall of 2008, students from various engineering disciplines will use the Vanderbilt Multi-User Biodiesel Engine Test Facility to investigate diesel engine performance parameters and test campus-produced biodiesel fuels, according to Professor Robert W. Pitz, chair of the Department of Mechanical Engineering. The facility will be housed in Featheringill Hall and will be managed by the mechanical engineering department under the direction of Professor Amrutur V. Anilkumar.

“The facility will include a four-cylinder diesel engine typically used in passenger cars,” Pitz said. “The engine will be linked to a computer that will analyze the test data and monitor engine performance with various fuels.”

With this new tool, students at this prestigious school in Nashville, Tennessee will be able to continue their work on making the country less dependent on overseas and non-renewable petroleum.

Check out this interesting little gadget. It’s the FuelPod2, selling in the United Kingdom.

This review on the Red Ferret Journal tells a little more about the two-foot-wide by 4.5-feet high device that will make up to 13 gallons of biodiesel a day… right in your own driveway:

FuelPod2 is a ‘plug and play’ home biofuel processor. Just pour that nasty waste chip fat into one end and out the other comes lovely cheap and ecologically pleasant biodiesel. The makers say that the fuel is good enough to run any standard diesel engined car without modifications, and it won’t affect your performance either. It’s cheaper too, of course, which means that it should pay for itself very quickly, especially with the rocketing price of crude at the moment.

The downside? Its cost! The FuelPod2 costs more than $4,200. I couldn’t find any info on where to buy it yet, but at that price, I think you’d want to wait until you find one used or the technology gets cheaper before laying down that kind of money.

Another biodiesel plant using the oilseed camelina is planned for Montana. Great Plains Oil and Exploration, aka Great Plains – The Camelina Company, has plans to build an oilseed cruching facility and biodiesel refinery in Eastern Montana. A company press release says the final location for the plant will be disclosed by the end of the year.

That part of Montana was chosen because it will be the center of the new camelina crop being grown for use in biodiesel. Camelina has certain advantages, including its high oil content, non-competition with food oil sources (ending the food vs. fuel debate), and ability to be grown in harsh conditions.

The announcement from Great Plains comes on the heels of another camelina biodiesel refinery in the works from Seattle-based Targeted Growth, Inc. and Green Earth Fuels of Houston, planned to start producing 100 million gallons of biodiesel a year by 2010 (see my November 21st post).

Cindy reported previously that New Holland is backing biodiesel 100%. Now it looks like sister company Case IH is coming on board with that idea.

Case IH has extended its recommendations on use of biofuels to include B100 — or pure biodiesel — on even more of its farm equipment models.

“With record prices for crude oil, Case IH committed to exploring better ways to use environmentally-friendly biofuels made from renewable raw materials. We have conducted rigorous laboratory and in-field tests to evaluate how our engines perform with various biodiesel blends,” says Don Rieser, Case IH director of tractor product management. “As always, our ultimate goal is greater productivity for our customers. That’s why we also are committed to educating our dealers and customers on how to get the best results with biodiesel fuels — especially when using higher-level blends.”

So, we’ve all heard the talk how biodiesel is just not built for the cold… how it gels up when the temperature goes down. But a ski resort in New England is proving that myth wrong.

This press release from the National Biodiesel Board tells how the resort is running its equipment on the green fuel:

“We know that even with heavy snow falling and temperatures hovering around 20 below, we can count on our biodiesel-powered vehicles to start up and perform with no problems at all,” said Mersereau, Operations Director for New Hampshire’s Cranmore Mountain Resort. “We have been very pleased with biodiesel’s performance and have had absolutely no cold weather problems.”

“Cranmore Mountain is one of many examples demonstrating that it is a myth that you can’t use B20 in cold weather,” said Joe Jobe, CEO of NBB. “As we enter the coldest time of year in many parts of the country, biodiesel users can rest assured that precautions such as using high quality fuel and following proper blending procedures, biodiesel blends are reliable even in sub-zero temperatures.”

Just like regular diesel, biodiesel can gel up in the cold weather. But the NBB has some tips to reduce that gelling, including mixing biodiesel with kerosene or diesel that has been treated with cold weather additives; using block and filter heaters; and even storing your vehicle inside. You can read more tips and stories about using biodiesel in the cold at NBB’s cold weather information web site: http://www.biodiesel.org/cold/.