Bio diesel fuel what's the deal

[PapaRaptor]

Not really an option here, we just have diesel fuel ( unless you go to Costco its Bio diesel).

I just returned from a trip from Wisconsin to Colorado and almost every state outside WI had only bio diesel at the pumps. I was forced to buy it and burn it. I think it sucks. Mileage went down and it was more expensive ( depending on state taxes and I admit I did not study the individual state fuel taxes). When I ran low and was able to purchase non bio diesel the mileage seemed to improve.

What is the ups and downs of it? How much ( percentage ) is in it?

Would you avoid it if you can??? or go out of you way to purchase it.?

 

[jhblaze1]

What's So Different about Biodiesel Fuel?

This article compares biodiesel with traditional petroleum diesel fuel, discussing properties, quality, blends ,and enhancement additives.

extension.psu.edu

.

 

[jhblaze1]

What's So Different about Biodiesel Fuel?

This article compares biodiesel with traditional petroleum diesel fuel, discussing properties, quality, blends ,and enhancement additives.

extension.psu.edu

.

based on this I'd say it's basically shit. Avoid if you can but probably don't worry if it's all you can fill with, especially if you're on the road and burning through tanks of it quickly. I'd not want to let a tank of it sit in my truck, undriven, for a long time without adding some sort of additive.

 

[PapaRaptor]

Sounds like more bs they are trying to sell us. I should have added that at most pumps its up to 20% bio diesel not 100%. So not really sure how much I was burning. but I did notice the lower fuel economy with it. I did not notice any performance difference but I was highway driving with my trailer not at the race track.

 

[jhblaze1]

Sounds like more bs they are trying to sell us. I should have added that at most pumps its up to 20% bio diesel not 100%. So not really sure how much I was burning. but I did notice the lower fuel economy with it. I did not notice any performance difference but I was highway driving with my trailer not at the race track.

it's liberal, environmental BS. Pretty much all you need to know.

I went to Germany for a grad school class trip while getting my MBA and noticed on train rides through the country side endless fields of yellow flowers. From a distance I thought they were growing tulips or daffodils or something as it was too far to see any detail but my professor explained that they're grown to produce biodiesel. Apparently rapeseed which is processed into rapeseed oil and then biodiesel. This was back in 2005 ish.

 

[Whyte Rhyno]

You could always be a total rebel and burn red diesel

 

[JC_Tremor]

Sad...so even diesels are gonna have shit added to "help" consumers...no one is safe!

 

[PapaRaptor]

Burnt out all the Bio from my Road trip and the mileage just went back up. Funny how that works.

 

[jhblaze1]

Burnt out all the Bio from my Road trip and the mileage just went back up. Funny how that works.

I'm assuming it's like ethanol in gas...you can add it, it will burn but it's mileage is not great.

My guess is it has gov't subsidies similar to corn based ethanol to foist this shit on consumers to satisfy the green eco loons.

When I moved to LA I had a rental minivan for 2 weeks that was flex fuel (e85) and noticed that the mileage was terrible on that stuff but it was like $2.65 a gallon vs nearly $4 fpr regular unleaded. I didn't do the math to figure out on a cost basis which is 'better' but I"m assuming dinosaur fuel is always better. You can guess what I filled that bitch up with before returning to Avis.

 

[jiggadog]

Any blend greater than B20, which has an energy equivalent of 99% of an equal amount of diesel from crude oil, you can expect to see see a decrease in fuel economy. This isn't about satisfying liberal-minded environmentalists. It's a waste stream, through processing, that has been transformed into a commodity. It's about making money, like most business endeavors, but also has added benefit of not ending up in waste disposal sites.

Ethanol is a different story in terms of why the market was created. The US wanted to reduce its' reliance on foreign oil, high oil prices, and reduce smog pollution in affected cities. In my opinion, while the rationale may have been reasonable at the time, the unintended consequences were that the fuel isn't that stable over time, isn't great for seals in small engines, and takes arable land out of production to make gas instead of food resulting in higher prices for food. Similar to biodeisel, any ethanol based blend greater than E10 is less energy dense than the same amount of gasoline.

https://afdc.energy.gov/fuels/fuel_comparison_chart.pdf

 

[jhblaze1]

Any blend greater than B20, which has an energy equivalent of 99% of an equal amount of diesel from crude oil, you can expect to see see a decrease in fuel economy. This isn't about satisfying liberal-minded environmentalists. It's a waste stream, through processing, that has been transformed into a commodity. It's about making money, like most business endeavors, but also has added benefit of not ending up in waste disposal sites.

Ethanol is a different story in terms of why the market was created. The US wanted to reduce its' reliance on foreign oil, high oil prices, and reduce smog pollution in affected cities. In my opinion, while the rationale may have been reasonable at the time, the unintended consequences were that the fuel isn't that stable over time, isn't great for seals in small engines, and takes arable land out of production to make gas instead of food resulting in higher prices for food. Similar to biodeisel, any ethanol based blend greater than E10 is less energy dense than the same amount of gasoline.

https://afdc.energy.gov/fuels/fuel_comparison_chart.pdf

not sure I follow. Biodiesel isn't made from waste byproducts of rapeseed oil production or other food oil production. Rapeseed is grown for the purpose of producing biodiesel. Rapeseed oil is also grown for food (canola oil) but it's not just leftovers and waste that is used to make biodiesel. massive dedicated farms exist for the sole purpose of producing bio fule from rapeseed. The whole point of biodiesel, from what i've read is that it's a renewale resource, i.e. liberal enviro bs.

Similar to ethanol where land is wasted to grow corn, huge swaths of land are wasted that could be growing food to instead grow rapeseed in order to make substandard fuel.

 

[jiggadog]

not sure I follow. Biodiesel isn't made from waste byproducts of rapeseed oil production or other food oil production. Rapeseed is grown for the purpose of producing biodiesel. Rapeseed oil is also grown for food (canola oil) but it's not just leftovers and waste that is used to make biodiesel. massive dedicated farms exist for the sole purpose of producing bio fule from rapeseed. The whole point of biodiesel, from what i've read is that it's a renewale resource, i.e. liberal enviro bs.

Similar to ethanol where land is wasted to grow corn, huge swaths of land are wasted that could be growing food to instead grow rapeseed in order to make substandard fuel.

You make a good point but not all, even though it is the majority, biodiesel is from plant feedstock. In the right blend I’d be ok using it but given the option I’d rather use diesel from crude as well.

 

[Mgmack]

not sure I follow. Biodiesel isn't made from waste byproducts of rapeseed oil production or other food oil production. Rapeseed is grown for the purpose of producing biodiesel. Rapeseed oil is also grown for food (canola oil) but it's not just leftovers and waste that is used to make biodiesel. massive dedicated farms exist for the sole purpose of producing bio fule from rapeseed. The whole point of biodiesel, from what i've read is that it's a renewale resource, i.e. liberal enviro bs.

Similar to ethanol where land is wasted to grow corn, huge swaths of land are wasted that could be growing food to instead grow rapeseed in order to make substandard fuel.

The issue of land use for crops to produce fuel instead of food is being addressed by researchers trying to develop the use of algae to produce biofuels.

 

[Vigilance247]

Maybe it is a good idea to add an auxiliary fuel tank after all? Then, we won’t have to use the bio diesel as much if at all.