It's less toxic than table salt, as biodegradable as sugar, and now it's running UNH buses. UNH Transportation Services (UTS) is leading the charge in alternative fuel sources and their most recent exploration is biodiesel.
Students who ride the shuttles have noticed sleek new buses, and touting electronic signs that read "runs on biodiesel."
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) had a role to play in the purchase of the new buses. According to a press release from New Hampshire Senator John Sununu's office back in August of 2005, the FTA gave a reported $990,028 to UNH in order to "improve transit maintenance and fueling facilities, acquire new alternative fuel vehicles, and emission retrofit existing buses used on the Wildcat Transit and Campus Connector." FTA funds paid roughly 80 percent of the buses' cost, according to Beverly Cray, manager of UTS.
The buses run on a certain type of biodiesel referred to as B20. The 20 in B20 indicates the percentage of biodiesel mixed with regular petroleum based diesel, or petrodiesel. Approximately 17 vehicles in the UNH fleet have made the switch to B20, says Cray. "I think its good, anything for the environment."
According to a report filed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), B20 cuts the emission of particulate matter by 12 percent and reduces polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and nitrated PAH by 13 and 50 percent respectively. Both these substances are related to health risks associated with burning diesel fuel. The report goes on to explain that smog causing nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons are also reduced.
Biodiesel also cuts the emission of CO2, the primary gas associated with global warming. A 1998 study by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Agriculture stated that biodiesel reduces net CO2 emissions when compared to petrodiesel. "This is due to biodiesel's closed carbon cycle," the study stated. "The CO2 released into the atmosphere when biodiesel is burned is recycled by growing plants, which are later processed into fuel."
Biodiesel gets its name from the fact that it is derived from plant oil and/or animal fat. Things as simple as canola oil can be processed into biodiesel. Because of this, "real" biodiesel has been mistakenly identified as fryalator oil. This confusion stems from the fact that some engines have been modified to run on only plant oils. These fuels are known as straight vegetable oils, not biodiesel.
To get biodiesel, vegetable oils are put through a process known as transesterification, which involves adding an alcohol, usually methanol. The product is biodiesel and glycerol which has many other industrial uses.
"They tend to run smoother," says Nate Brown, veteran bus driver for UTS. "Anything to help the environment… I am glad to not see them belching out smoke." So far, Brown has had no problems with the B20 buses.
However, there are a few concerns to note when considering biodiesel. One objection could affect UNH because of its cold winters. According to the National Biodiesel Board (NBB), biodiesel has a higher gelling point than petrodiesel. If diesel gels, it could clog fuel filters or fail to start. Despite reports of gelling in other cold winter communities that use B20, the NBB claims that B20 reacts similarly as regular petrodiesel in frigid conditions.
Some environmentalists are wary of biodiesel's widespread usage. As biodiesel grows in demand, forests can be cut down to make way for biodiesel crop farms. According to Friends of the Earth, a British environmental protection group, deforestation has already occurred to make way for said farms. Tens of millions more acres are planned for a similar fate.
There is new research happening right here at UNH that could prevent such things from happening. The UNH Biodiesel Group published a paper in 2004 written by UNH faculty member Michael Briggs. In the paper, it discusses the possibility of growing algae to produce biodiesel instead of less efficient plants like soy. The article goes on to point out that roughly .4 percent of America's land would be needed to produce all the diesel fuel needed for transportation using algae. What is even more hopeful is that algae could be grown in desert areas or waste water treatment plants. There are even possibilities with using algae to capture excess CO2 released from factories.
Those considering using biodiesel as an environmentally friendly fuel can visit NBB's website, www.nbb.org, to view a listing of all biodiesel retailers. Evan's Expressmart in Newmarket is the closest retailer to UNH offering B10 biodiesel. As of Thursday, a gallon of B10 biodiesel cost $2.74 at Evan's Expressmart, a gallon of unleaded gasoline cost $2.29, and at Blue Canoe in Newmarket, petrodiesel cost $2.64 a gallon. Converting vehicles to biodiesel is relatively easy and in many cases requires no alterations to diesel engines. Questions about modifications to vehicles can also be answered through the NBB website.
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