Keith,
Just out of sheer curiosity, where does the information that Most biodiesel
in the US is soy biodiesel come from?
I was wondering too, since I cannot find the information even on the NBB
(unless I am blind which is never outside the realm of possibility), where
might be a good source to look for a list of currently operating biodiesel
plant? Ours closed and is in bankruptcy and of the other two in the local
area, only one is operating. We couldn't compete even switching to animal
fats - and all those inherent processing problems. Of course, the one
operating is big-bucks AGP and, yes, uses soy.
Hmmm. D'ya think I might have sort of answered my own question here?
Although I will say there is a soybean processing coop south of here that
ceased production of biodiesel in their facility for at least 6 months last
I heard. They sold their soybean oil to AGP during that period. Sigh.
Thanks so much!
Denise
On Sat, Oct 17, 2009 at 2:09 PM, Keith Addison
[EMAIL PROTECTED]wrote:
Most biodiesel in the US is soy biodiesel, which doesn't need high
pressure to oxidise and polymerise, it's a semi-drying oil, it'll
polymerise anyway. The IV is well above the EU biodiesel standard
upper limit. (See Iodine Values
http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield.html#iodine, National
standards for biodiesel
http://journeytoforever.org/biodiesel_yield2.html#biodstds.) The
biodiesel industry in the US seems to be more are less in denial
about this, but then the US National Biodiesel Board is a creature of
US Big Soy.
Hm, I must check how the US-EU row over the US dumping cheap soy
biodiesel on the EU market is progressing. IIRC last time I looked
the US was accusing the EU of protectionism, on the basis of what
sounded like GMO-style substantial equivalence of America's soy and
Europe's rapeseed oil, though they're not equivalent when it comes to
iodine values and polymerisation. Rapeseed oil has a much lower IV
and is much less likely to polymerise. Nonetheless, a lot of
Europeans use anti-oxidant with their biodiesel, while very little
anti-oxidant is used in the US, by contrast. Also, in the US most
biodiesel is the NBB's commercial B20, a low blend with a lower risk
of polymerisation, so they have to care about it that much less.
They're never going to accept that soy could be anything less than
ideal. I get the impression that, even if there is such a thing,
high-pressure polymerisation could be just a convenient scapegoat for
soy's shortcomings.
Best
Keith
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