<x-charset ISO-8859-1> Fast food aroma replaces toxic whiff of diesel fumes
Monday, February 09, 2004 Kent Spencer The Province http://www.canada.com/search/story.html?id=0ee1d616-8107-40df-b4de- f3de1da2bc75 Some drivers are feeling better about foul-smelling diesel trucks after toodling around in ones powered by french-fry grease. The pilot project in five Lower Mainland cities takes recycled grease from fast-food restaurants and mixes it with diesel. Its supporters, including City of Richmond vehicle fleet manager Ken Fryer, cite a study which found the fuel cuts harmful emissions by 24 per cent. "Alternative fuels is who I am. We believe in this stuff," says Fryer, 49, who has dabbled in natural gas-powered cars and new combustion systems since his days as a college student in Ontario. "We want to do our part for the environment." Fryer manages a fleet of 500 vehicles, including loaders, forklifts, garbage trucks, street cleaners, pickups. The five Lower Mainland cities -- the others are Vancouver, Burnaby, Delta and North Vancouver City -- are testing the viability of bio- fuels. The fuel aims to make diesel more environmentally friendly by adding used cooking oil, animal fats and/or oils from grains such as canola and soybean. The smell of french fries is a little added bonus for truck drivers used to inhaling toxic diesel fumes. "The guys say it smells of french fries after it burns," says Fryer. "That's a lot better than diesel. All that rotten, gucky stuff is gone." Adds Delta fleet manager Curtis Rhodes: "The truck smells like a McDonald's kitchen. People chuckle about it because diesel fumes can be horrible. They'd sooner smell food." Ian Thomson of North Vancouver's Canadian Bio Fuels Corp. says it works because the diesel is a pressure-ignited machine designed to run on vegetable oil. "Rudolf Diesel invented the engine 110 years ago to run on vegetable oil so farmers could be self-sufficient," he says. "It burns hotter than diesel and combusts more completely." The Enivronmental Protection Agency in the U.S. -- where bio-fuel is used in 300 fleets -- shows a 24-per-cent reduction in most harmful chemicals. The B-20 fuel is mixed up in a ratio of 20 per cent bio and 80 per cent diesel. In the Lower Mainland, tests are being carried out on two vehicles per municipality: dump trucks as well as heavier street cleaners. The results will be scientifically measured for tailpipe emissions and presented as a report. Problems preventing widespread adoption are availability and price. The bio-fuel has to be shipped from California, resulting in a cost up to 10 cents per litre more than diesel's 70 cents a litre. But Thomson plans to produce bio-diesel locally, using a process in which the raw ingredient is treated with alcohol. "We're trying to make it a viable business," he says. Fryer says the saving in noxious chemicals from the city's 50 heavy trucks would be huge -- they burn 2.3 million litres of diesel a year. But he admitted the public has to buy into the higher costs associated with the project. [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://www.canada.com/search/story.html?id=0ee1d616-8107-40df-b4de- f3de1da2bc75 Pierre ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Send the freshest Valentine's flowers with a FREE vase from only $29.99! Shipped direct from the grower with a 7 day freshness guarantee and prices so low you save 30-55% off retail! http://us.click.yahoo.com/_iAw9B/xdlHAA/3jkFAA/FGYolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://archive.nnytech.net/index.php?list=biofuel Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/biofuel/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/ </x-charset>
