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Yellow Gold & Green Highways

Yellow Gold & Green Highways. Recycled Oil As a Solution to the Nation’s Fuel Crisis. Karen L. Johansen LAW 802 Spring 2004. Pollution Producers. SUVs & Minivans. Trucks. Sports Cars. Gasoline and Diesel Fuel…. Are a non-renewable resource Pose serious risks to the environment

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Yellow Gold & Green Highways

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  1. Yellow Gold & Green Highways Recycled Oil As a Solution to the Nation’s Fuel Crisis Karen L. Johansen LAW 802 Spring 2004

  2. Pollution Producers SUVs & Minivans Trucks Sports Cars

  3. Gasoline and Diesel Fuel… • Are a non-renewable resource • Pose serious risks to the environment • Pose health risks • Are becoming more and more costly • Promote reliance on foreign nations

  4. Hydrocarbons • Molecules made of Hydrogen (H) and Carbon (C) • Chains, branches, and rings • High in energy • Take on many different forms • Useless unless processed…

  5. Fractional Distillation Theory: hydrocarbon chains have progressively higher boiling points as their length increases • Crude oil is heated • Chains are sorted by vaporization temperature • Fractions are now in usable form

  6. Formula Energy Structure Formula Energy Structure CH4 0.00 C6H14 14.53 C2H6 3.41 C7H16 17.24 C3H8 6.27 C8H18 19.96 C4H10 9.09 C9H20 22.68 C5H12 11.81 C10H22 25.39 Energy Increases With Molecule Size

  7. Cracking • Problem: Overabundance of fractions that boil at high temperatures, shortage of gasoline • Solution: Large molecules (16 – 36 Carbons) are broken down, or “cracked,” into smaller molecules (8 Carbons)

  8. Gasoline (Internal Combustion) Engines Four-stroke cycle • Intake: valve opens, piston moves down, air and gas enter • Compression: piston moves up to compress gas and air • Combustion: spark plug ignites the gas – energy is released • Exhaust: exhaust leaves the chamber, goes out the tailpipe

  9. Diesel Engines Four-stroke cycle • Intake: air enters the chamber • Compression: piston compresses air, temperature and pressure increase • Fuel Injection & Combustion: a fine mist of fuel is sprayed into the chamber; heat of the air causes the fuel to ignite – energy is released • Exhaust: exhaust leaves the chamber, goes out the tailpipe

  10. Diesel fuel… Is heavier than gas 12 - 22 Carbon atoms Boiling point: 250° – 350° C Requires less refining Usually cheaper than gas Has a higher energy density 147,000 BTU / gallon High flash point (>45° C) / low autoignition temperature (210 ° C) Gasoline… Is lighter than diesel 5 – 12 Carbon atoms Boiling point: 40° – 205° C Highly refined Usually more expensive Generally burns cleaner 125,000 BTU / gallon Low flash point (<45° C) / high autoignition temperature (246° C) Diesel Fuel vs. Gasoline

  11. Internal Combustion Ignited by a spark Low flash point High autoignition point If diesel were used…the spark would not raise it above its flash point – no combustion Diesel High combustion High flash point Low autoignition point If gasoline were used…it would not self-ignite without a spark – no combustion Why can’t gas and diesel engines run on both fuels? Vegetable oil and diesel have similar chemical and physical properties…

  12. Vegetable Oil Fuel • Environmentally sustainable • Renewable • Low polluting • Economical • Healthier • Promotes the economy and national security

  13. Types of Vegetable Oil Fuel • Biodiesel (80-90% vegetable oil, 10-20% alcohol, <2% catalyst) • Vegetable Oil / Kerosene • Straight Vegetable Oil (SVO or WVO)

  14. But First, A Little More Chemistry… • Review: Hydrocarbons contain H and C • Alkanes – one type of hydrocarbon • Formula: CnH2n+2 • The molecules from before are alkanes: • CH4 – Methane • C2H6 – Ethane • C3H8 – Propane • C4H10 – Butane

  15. Properties of Alkanes • Less dense than water • Non-polar • Dissolve oils, fats and waxes • Easily burn, produce heat

  16. Alkanes & Alkyls CH4 Methane CH3 Methyl • An Alkane with a H removed is an Alkyl • Alkyls attach to functional groups & take its characteristics • Example: Methane O CH3OH Methanol

  17. Alkyls & Esters • Functional groups: • Alcohol: alkyl+OH • Carboxylic acid: alkyl+COOH • Ester: alkyl+COO+alkyl • Vegetable oils are esters of glycerin (an alcohol, makes oil thick and sticky) and carboxylic acids

  18. Transesterification • Biodiesel is made through a process called transesterification • Vegetable oil → vegetable methyl ester • Glycerin (an alcohol) is removed from the chain of esters • Vegetable methyl ester is less thick

  19. Transesterification

  20. Vegetable Oil / Kerosene • Experimental • Requires precise measuring • Produces unreliable results • Unstable • Hazardous to store • Can damage engines

  21. Straight Vegetable Oil • Also called Waste Vegetable Oil when recycled from restaurants • Diesel (the man) made an engine that would run on heavy fuels, including vegetable oil • Modern diesel engines have been modified to run on cheaper petroleum fuel, which is thinner • Modern diesel engines require modification to run on SVO or WVO

  22. Viscosity A measure of resistance to flow

  23. Modifying a vehicle for SVO • Second fuel tank • Hoses • Solenoid valve • Clamps, caps & tees

  24. SVO Conversion Diagram

  25. WVO Requires Filtering

  26. The Cost of Fuel is Increasing As of April 19, 2004: • Average price per gallon of gas: $1.81 • Up .027 from April 12, 2004 • Up .239 from April 19, 2003 • Average price per gallon of diesel: $1.72 • Up .045 from April 12, 2004 • Up .195 from April 19, 2003

  27. The Balance of Trade In 1998, the US… • Produced 8.14M barrels of oil / day • Exported .95M barrels of oil / day • Imported 10.71M barrels of oil / day • Net: 9.76M barrels imported / day

  28. Transportation in the US • In 1998, transportation = 27.8% of the nation’s energy consumption • In 1998, cars, motorcycles, light trucks & SUVs consumed 123 Billion gallons of fuel over 2.4 Trillion miles • From 1970 to 1993, gas mileage increased steadily each year • Since 1993, gas mileage has decreased due to vans, trucks, SUVs and sports cars

  29. Vehicle Pollution in 1998 • Carbon monoxide: 50 M tons • Nitrogen oxides: 7.8 M tons • Volatile organic compounds: 5.3 M tons • Particulate matter: 460 K tons • Sulfur dioxide: 330 K tons • Lead: 20 K tons

  30. Also in 1998… • 885 K gallons of petroleum spilled into US waterways • 371 K gallons of petroleum was released from leaking underground storage tanks

  31. Air Pollution and Human Health • Lung illnesses: sore throat, stuffy & runny nose, coughing, eye irritation • Lung infections: croup, bronchitis, pneumonia • Asthma • Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema & bronchitis) • Coronary artery disease • Heart-rhythm problems • Heart failure

  32. Favorable energy balance ratio (2.5:1) Biodegradable and non-toxic Degrades 4x faster than petroleum fuels (98% biodegradation in 21 days) B100 – as biodegradable as sugar and less toxic than table salt! Transportation and storage is safer than petroleum fuels More lubricating – can lengthen engine life Significantly reduces emissions Difficult to obtain Can cause rubber parts to break down Can initially clog the fuel filter Gels in cold temperatures 5% decrease in power and efficiency Biodiesel:Advantages & Disadvantages

  33. Tremendous reduction in emissions After conversion cost, fuel is free Increase in personal freedom Ecologically sustainable Vehicle modification Maintenance Fuel requires filtering SVO/WVOAdvantages & Disadvantages

  34. SVO Production • Waste • Soybean oil used in restaurants is recycled instead of going into landfills • 3 B gallons / year equals 5% of diesel fuel use! • Virgin • Soybean: 375 kg oil / hectare • Rapeseed: 1000 kg oil / hectare • Algae: 91,250 kg oil / hectare • In the US, 24 M hectares are fallow… if used for rapeseed fuel production, it could produce 6B gallons of oil / year, equal to 10% of diesel fuel consumption!

  35. Emissions Reduction

  36. Biodiesel & SVO Health Benefits • Contain no benzene (carcinogen) • >50% reduction in PAHs & nitrated PAHs (suspected carcinogens) • Safe to store and handle

  37. Fuel type Miles/gallon Gallons/100miles Gallons/mile Price/gallon Cents/mile Gasoline 30 3.3 0.033 $1.79 5.91 Diesel 50 2.0 0.020 $1.68 3.36 Biodiesel 50 2.0 0.020 $2.79 5.58 SVO ~50 ~2.0 ~0.20 FREE FREE Cost Comparison

  38. Legislation & Policy • Biodiesel • 7 USCS §8104: Sec. of Ag. authorized to give grants to educators to instruct gov. & private groups with vehicle fleets about the benefits of biodiesel use • 7 CFR §§2903.1-.23: Biodiesel Fuel Education Program • 42 USCS §13220: Sec. of Energy authorized to establish a credit system for using at least B20 • 10 CFR §§490.701-.708: Biodiesel Fuel Use Credit Program • SVO – no laws at this time

  39. In Conclusion Biodiesel & SVO… • Better for the environment • Renewable • Better for health • Better on your wallet • Benefit the economy • Promote national security

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