Fighting Global Warming: Biodiesel Expansion Around the World
This article is written by Dark Sith
With worldwide climate change and global temperatures rapidly climbing, people are turning to cleaner sources of energy. Biodiesel is a promising alternative fuel that can make the Earth a healthier place to live in. Today, there is increasing expansion in the production, distribution and use of this clean and renewable energy supply.
Biodiesel is derived from a process called transesterification, where animal fats and plant oils are processed into the substances of the fuel. In 1853, scientists J. Patrick and E. Duffy had conducted a kind of transesterification of vegetable oil.
In 1900, Rudolf Diesel demonstrated a diesel engine that ran on peanut oil at the World Fair in Paris. However, this peanut oil fuel is not considered biodiesel because it didn’t go through transesterification.
Interest in the use of vegetable oils as fuels remained through the 1920s and 1930s. Different countries, such as France, the United Kingdom, Japan, and China tested and experimented with these oils during; however, they encountered some problems because of the viscosity of the vegetable oils, which led to engine deposits.
G. Chavanne of Belgium produced the first biodiesel in 1931. Since then, various research and experimentation have been conducted to improve biodiesel. In the 1990s, European countries began installing biodiesel power plants. By 1998, 21 countries began producing commercial products. Today, manufacturers use several sources to manufacture biodiesel.
All around the world today, biodiesel use is expanding. In Australia, almost all metropolitan trains and buses in Adelaide run on 5% biodiesel mixed with petroleum. In Canada, the government has set a goal of 500 million liters of biodiesel by 2010. In Finland, an oil company plans to build a production plant with a capacity of 170,000 tons per year.
Scotland has a a power plant capable of producing 50 million liters per year. Brazil has three commercial biodiesel factories that produce 45.6 million liters per year. In India, the government encourages the cultivation of Jatropha plants, the oil of which is used for railway engines.
Farmers in the United States use the fuel in tractors and other equipment to raise public awareness. Aside from these countries, Belgium, Costa Rica, Thailand, Singapore, the Czech Republic, Norway and others have also already taken steps to increase their biodiesel production.
By improving fuel technology and raising people’s awareness about biodiesel, the Earth may see a better future with this clean and green fuel.
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