Biodiesel - A painless transition from fossil fuels
Biodiesel is the transesterification of vegetable oils into combustible diesel fuel. Rudolf Diesel the inventor of the diesel engine was not the inventor of biodiesel, however, his popularity and achievements merited the name. Biodiesel was most probably discovered in 1853 by two chemists making soap (E. Duffy and J. Patrick). But the uses of transesterification did not become apparent until much later in the late 1980’s early 1990’s. In February of 1892, Diesel applied for a patent on his engine. A year later, a decent design was already being produced. In 1897 at the Exibition Fair in Paris, Rudolf Diesel showed the world his invention, and became famous. The diesel engine can be run on biofuel as it is run today on fossil fuel.
Biodiesel is different from petrodiesel basically in that rather than being processed from fossils, biodiesels are processed from vegetables such as soy, corn, peanuts, apple seeds, deep fry oil from fast food restaurants… etc. Anything that is a fatty acid can be used as the basis for esterification. What destroyed the biodiesel industry was viscosity. The thinner the diesel, the faster it moves, and that, plus price (believe it or not), is what made petrodiesel win the economical and political situations during the depression. Renewable vs. limited resources… So obvious to us now days, especially after suffering from petrol dependency, but the industry for renewable fell out long ago. Rudolf Diesel himself is noted as having said in 1911 “The diesel engine can be fed with vegetable oils and would help considerably in the development of agriculture of the countries which use it.” Then in 1912 “the use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today. But such oils may become in course of time as important as petroleum and the coal tar products of the present time.”
What wondrous and inspiring words, yet forgotten and set aside by the empty culture of a civilization bent on filling their souls with image and consumption. Biodiesel is far more energy efficient than petrodiesel, especially when tracking the ecological footprints. Petrodiesel leaves a mark that takes time and effort to wipe clean. Epistemologists and political scientists agree that if civilization continues to depend on a resource that cannot be replenished, then that resource will one day be the cause of serious changes in the quality of life. Speculation aside, biodiesel is an alternative that if invested in, can make the “unavoidable change” subtle and almost unnoticed. Biodiesel is a solution. At the moment, considered “alternative”, most people associate biodiesel with renegade hippies lost in a “green” world. Biodiesel is definately dominated by a more humanistic culture, and as political tendencies go, has even been speculated as being “hunted” by those interested in securing wealth.
The strange disappearance of Rudolf Diesel on the English Channel, while on a business trip seems almost coincidental to the rise to power of black oil barons. Without Rudolf Diesel there to defend biodiesel and agriculture, it seems as though they just took over. Political situations modified, making it harder and harder to see a biodiesel market survive. Petroldiesel was cheaper back then (a foreign concept to us now) and supplies were far more abundant. But whatever the facts that led up to what appears to be a conspiracy for black oil barons, we do find ourselves in the here and now. What we need to do now is change the future. Speculation and philosophy around the horror of our industrial revolution is useless unless it in some way feeds and propels our future in a progressive way. Biodiesel is the future. Biodiesel is the future because it will stimulate our agriculture providing jobs out in the countryside (perhaps minimizing the migration to our metropolises) and thereby offering a better quality of life, not only socio-economically, but also environmentally and culturally. With government incentive, biodiesel could potentially offer a solution to the increasing challenges of super population in third word metropolises such as Sao Paulo and Mexico City.
If biodiesel becomes a tendency in the near future, not to replace petroldiesel, but to at the very least offer an economical alternative, with governmental incentive packages, agriculture would become a much more wealthy area, population distribution would spread more evenly, city centers would become far more enjoyable and relaxing than today and crime would diminish. Biodiesel is more than merely an alternative source of renewable energy for cars and trucks, biodiesel offers a future with more scientific development in areas that work with our planet rather than against her, biodiesel offers a calmer, less stressful and far more secure future based on a nations self-sustainability that invests in a far more humane, yet still very profitable resource. Rudolf Diesel knew this about biodiesel, our political scientists and epistemologists know this about biodiesel, yet we the consumers are told differently at the gas station.
Biodiesel is on the cutting edge of breaking a scientific paradigm, and with that comes questioning. We should question the nature of our society, we should question the nature of our resources and how we use them. We should question the nature of how are ways will effect us in the future, or effect our children. Questioning biodiesel is just as important as questioning petrodiesel. Biodiesel will prove to be a more sustainable reality for our next generations. Biodiesel, if well questioned by all, will be the future.
This page: Biodiesel
