BrevardBioDiesel Blog

We've put together a new writeup in our education section that covers the topic of biodiesel chemical stability and the chemical property called Iodine Value. Take a gander at the pretty molecular model pics and our take on what information is out there in this area. Here's the concluding paragraph for the short attention span crowd:

To try and wrap things up, it is clear that both vegetable oils and biodiesel can eventually degrade thru oxidation. The commonly used measurement for this property, Iodine Value, should be reasonably understood as only a rough guide to a process that is better understood by examining the chemical makeup and breakdown process involved. Alternative properties, specifically OSI and APE/BAPE, more accurately reflect the chemical stability of biodiesel.

Update:
Wanted to note this US Navy excellent stability report thanks to M.B. at biodieselnow forums.

Biodiesel production from waste (or other) vegetable oil (WVO) requires methanol (or less commonly, ethanol). This news story points out a company that is producing methanol from a Florida waste product - orange peels. The company, Ener1 Inc., received grant money from the Florida Hydrogen Initiative for a Clean Power for an Interstate Rest Area project which will use the methanol.

Wired News reports on the upcoming diesel hybrid model vehicles and the possibility they will overtake gasoline hybrids. Also mentioned is the NOx reduction due to hybrid technology usage.

On a related note, these two articles, while not that recent, have some interesting comments by Robert Bosch regarding the diesel engine market.
Article 1
Article 2
Look for these thoughts:
"This means the average driver can save nearly $600 on fuel costs every single year by driving a diesel here in the United States."
"In the last 10 years, diesel engines have reduced particulate emissions by more than 80 percent, nitrous oxide (NOx) and unburned hydrocarbons by approximately 90 percent, and carbon monoxide (CO) emissions by 97 percent. These successes stem primarily from a combination of injection and aftertreatment technology."

Though officially limited in scope to B5 (5% biodiesel blend), this announcement is an important first step in the furthering of official auto manufacturer biodiesel endorsement as shown earlier with the factory B5 fueled DaimlerChrysler Jeep Liberty.
User reports of successful use over 10's of thousands of miles of B100 in various VW TDI models have preceded this announcement for years. Scoping thru the Biodiesel form at the tdiclub.com site reveals anecdotal reports of:

• 18,000 miles on B20 in 2004 Passat TDI
• 22,000 miles using B0-B100 on 2004 Jetta Wagon
• 10,000 miles B100 on 2005 Jetta Wagon

etc.
Another place to see user's success with vehicles is the testimonial page at biodieselnow.com

The March 2005 issue of Maxim magazine, more well known for it's "lack of coverage" in certain areas, has a 4 page article titled "Have Fries, Will Travel" that actually has some truths about biodiesel. Josh Tickell ("From the Fryer to the Fuel Tank") appears in several pictures and is the main biodiesel proponent in the story. Maria Alovert (aka "Girl Mark") gets several paragraphs of the story (and a photo) promoting the "open source" analogy of the biodiesel scene. Sprinkled with undergrad humour, there isn't a consistent high level of information density in the article, but it might plant a seed of interest in a wider audience.