*SunDiesel – the cleanest biofuel with enormous potential*
Text & photos courtesy DaimlerChrysler AG
edited 09-28-2004
* 20% of European fuel requirements could be covered by biofuels
* Up to 200 million tons of CO2 emission in Europe could be
prevented annually
* France, with a diesel share of 67%, has high savings potential
* Particulate emissions reduced by up to 50%
The potential of synthetic biofuels is at the focus of a presentation by
DaimlerChrysler at the 2004 Paris Motor Show. This is a significant
element of the initiative “Energy for the Future”. With these
“Biomass-To-Liquid“ (BTL) fuels, which can be manufactured from any type
of biomass or organic residual material, CO2 emissions in Europe could
be reduced by as much as 200 million tons annually. This corresponds to
half of all CO2 emissions in France, for example. The BTL fuel
“SunDiesel”, first presented to the international public by
DaimlerChrysler in 2003, can be used to power any existing diesel
vehicle. Since 67% of new car registrations in France are diesels,
two-thirds of all new cars could immediately be made more
environment-friendly.
“According to our estimates, SunDiesel could cover 20% of all European
fuel requirements”, said Prof. Herbert Kohler, Head of the Vehicle Body
and Drive Systems Directorate and Corporate Environmental Officer at
DaimlerChrysler, on the occasion of the presentation at the Paris Motor
Show.”Our investigations carried out on the test rig have shown that
there is even more potential in the interplay of BTL and the engine;
following further optimisation to diesel engines, additional
improvements in emissions can be expected.”
Biogenous fuels are largely CO2–neutral. In other words, during the
combustion process only that amount of carbon dioxide arises in the
engine that the plants derived from the air during growth. The carbon
dioxide balance is thus even, and the atmosphere is not burdened by
additional CO2. The significance of BTL fuels was borne out by the EUCAR
“Well to Wheel” study, which concluded that BTL fuels have the highest
CO2 reduction potential, amounting to more than 90%; they are thus
considerably superior to biodiesel from rapeseed oil, with just under
50%, which only makes use of part of the biomass.
As well as helping secure fuel supplies, biogenous fuels do not release
any new fossil CO2 into the atmosphere. With a possible market share of
20%, biofuels could make a significant contribution towards reducing CO2
emissions from road traffic. Whereas technical modifications to the
engine are only effective in the case of commercial vehicles, BTL fuels
have a positive effect in all road vehicles, since they can be used
without the need for technical modifications.
A first pilot project for the manufacture of “SunDiesel” has been
initiated by DaimlerChrysler together with CHOREN in Freiberg (Saxony).
Volkswagen has also joined this co-operation, in which “SunDiesel” is
now being produced for the first time in order to sound out the
advantages of this extremely clean BTL diesel fuel: it contains neither
sulphur nor aromates, is odourless and can be used directly in existing
vehicles without the need for modifications to the engine. Moreover, the
highly pure BTL fuel synthesised in Freiberg could also reduce the
emissions of particulates by as much as 50% and of carbon monoxide and
hydrocarbons by 90%, without modifications to the engine.
According to a proposal by the European Union from 2001, the share of
biofuels in overall European fuel supplies is to be increased from the
present level of just over 1% to 5.75% by 2010 and to 8% by 2020. The EU
is currently working on a directive aimed at attaining a biofuel share
of as much as 15% by 2020. 6% of the diesel requirements of the EU could
be covered by residual materials not currently used, such as thinning
wood from the forestry sector, industrial waste wood and straw or other
sources of organic waste. Further potential is provided by the imminent
eastern extension of the European Union. A further 14% could be attained
through the use of existing pastureland, especially fallow land. The
biofuels most widely used today, such as so-called biodiesel (rapeseed
methyl ester = RME) and ethanol are lacking the potential to reach these
EU target figures on their own. Since only the fruits of the plants can
be used to produce the required oil, yields are necessarily low.
DaimlerChrysler’s commitment together with the petroleum industry to
manufacture environment-friendly “designer” fuels from biomass is an
integral part of the “Energy for the Future” initiative. Under this
motto, the automotive manufacturer outlines five stages along the road
to sustainable mobility:
1. Optimisation of petrol and diesel engines
2. Improvements to conventional fuels
3. Use of CO2–neutral BTL fuels
4. Further development of hybrid drives as an interim solution
towards emission-free mobility with fuel cell vehicles.
FD
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