Pumps start dispensing vegetable oil-based fuel

Kira Schmidt, of the environmental group Bluewater Network, holds up a bottle of vegetable-oil based envirodiesel fuel at a filling station in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco vehicle exhaust may soon smell like french fries with the opening of the first public pumping station for biodiesel, a vegetable oil-based fuel, in a major city.

The alternative fuel station opened Wednesday, a day after a similar station opened in Sparks, Nev.

The fuel, made from either soybean oil or recycled vegetable oil from restaurants, avoids the release of carbon monoxide and the small particles released by burning traditional diesel. It doesn't cut down on smog-causing nitrogen oxide, however.

Diesel engines can use the fuel without any modification, and it contributes to the life of the engine by increasing lubrication so moving parts won't break down as easily, said Robert Skinner, a spokesman for World Energy Alternatives, the company providing biodiesel to the San Francisco station. And, yes, it does make the exhaust smell like french fries.

The station offers 100 percent biodiesel fuel, but a fuel made with 20 percent biodiesel, 80 percent petroleum diesel, is available at other facilities.

Biodiesel has some drawbacks. It's more expensive than regular diesel, selling for about $3.15 a gallon in San Francisco and about $1.62 a gallon in Sparks. It also causes a slight drop in fuel economy.

The fuel is used primarily by fleets of vehicles such as school buses, Skinner said. "We've got about 60 large-scale fleets using biodiesel, from the U.S. Air Force to the New Jersey transit system," he said.

Biodiesel can help federal fleets meet a regulation requiring them to reduce their annual petroleum consumption 20 percent by 2005.

The federal government estimates sales of the fuel reached 6.7 million gallons in 2000 and could reach 20 million gallons this year.

Prices have come down, in part because of a subsidy for soybean biodiesel producers, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

Biodiesel dates back more than 100 years, and peanut oil was the first type of fuel used by Rudolf Diesel to power his first engine in 1895.

"As we move into a time when petroleum is not so readily available, we're turning back the clock," Skinner said. "It's the most effective greenhouse gas reduction technology for existing engines."

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On the Net:

California Transportation Program
Bluewater Network
National Biodiesel Board
The Veggie Van

Released: June 28, 2000

Vegetable oil: not just for cooking anymore
Biodiesel will power electric generators at Taste of Minnesota

(St. Paul) - Vegetable oil will be in demand at this year's Taste of Minnesota…and not only for cooking. The electric generators for the event will be powered by biodiesel - an alternative fuel made from vegetable oil that has gone through a special treatment process. The Minnesota Department of Commerce Energy Division is sponsoring the demonstration.

The portable generators will be refueled with B20 - a mixture of 20% biodiesel and 80% diesel fuel. B20 can be used in diesel electric generators or transportation engines without any modifications or changes to the machinery. The vegetable oil for the biodiesel can be made from soybeans or used cooking oil from restaurants.

"Recent high prices for gasoline and other petroleum products are focusing attention on alternative fuels," said acting Commerce Commissioner Jim Bernstein. "Biodiesel, like ethanol, can help meet America's energy demands with products grown in Minnesota. Compared to gasoline, biodiesel also produces significantly fewer pollution emissions."

Although not used in this demonstration, B100 (pure biodiesel) can also be used to power engines. B100 requires minor modifications to the soft rubber components of generators and engines so that they don't degrade over time. B100 is said to smell like French fries when burned.

The Taste of Minnesota is held on the Capitol grounds and runs from Friday, June 30 through Tuesday, July 4. Approximately 600 gallons of biodiesel will be burned during the event.

The Department of Commerce regulates the telecommunications, energy and the financial services industries in Minnesota.

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