The idea of using an all natural biodegradable fuel source may seem a bit too science fiction or Hollywood for the average person. Most alternative fuel sources have left much to be desired, but there is an alternative to the usual vegetable based alternative fuel and fossil fuels. Biodiesel is the future of alternative fuels.
It burns much cleaner, is made from renewable resources, and can actually be made in your very own kitchen. Biodiesel contains no petroleum and as a result it is environmentally friendly. It is made using vegetable oil, alcohol, and lye, all of which are renewable resources, so when you power your car with biodiesel, you are using a fuel that only uses renewable resources.
In the past, alternative fuels werent practical, so they never became mainstream. Vegetable oil based fuels of yesterday required specially modified engines in order to be of any use and the average person usually had no interest in modifying their vehicles. Biodiesel can be used in place of fossil fuels in the car you drive everyday. No modifications are needed. That means that biodiesel can be used in every machine that requires fossil fuels, from generators, to farm equipment to the family car. Considering that biodiesel costs about seventy cents a gallon it is a realistic alternative to fossil fuels that is starting to catch on.
Biodiesel is available for purchase. It can be bought directly from the manufacture or distributor and if you search around, you might even find a few gas stations that allow you to pump it into your car. Biodiesel pumping stations are starting to crop up at scattered locations throughout the country. If you arent with in the proximity of a station that sells biodiesel, you can even make it yourself.
The process for making biodiesel at home isnt much harder than concocting a jr. high science experiment. The ingredients are easy to find at almost any hardware store and even the equipment it basic. By mixing lye together with antifreeze, sodium methoxide is formed. When you mix sodium methoxide with vegetable oil it transforms itself into two useful substances, glycerin and biodiesel. Glycerin is used in making soap and if you ever whip up a batch of biodiesel, you can use the resulting glycerin byproduct to make your own homemade soap. Imagine doing that with a fossil fuel!
Biodiesel is an amazing discovery that will revolutionize the way we view fuel. Environmentally friendly, it is just as efficient as the fossil fuels we now burn, but much less expensive. Because you can make it yourself using commonly found ingredients, using biodiesel means that you will never be dependant on oil companies again. |
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