With steadily rising fuel costs and concerns about greenhouse gas emissions damaging the climate, many of us are looking for alternatives. One of them is biodiesel, but how does biodiesel work and how well does it respond to these problems? The quick answer is that this fuel works exactly the same way as normal diesel and can be used in most modern engines without any modification. Here are some points to consider if you plan to make the switch.

Atmosphere:

Using biodiesel reduces greenhouse gas pollutants much more successfully compared to ethanol, gasoline, and standard diesel fuel. Plus, it will help you shift your energy use toward better renewable options. There is a 90% decrease in emissions if you choose to use 100% pure biofuel instead of fossil fuel diesel. The reason for this is that oil crops like soybeans absorb CO2 (carbon dioxide) from the environment as they grow. When this vegetable oil is turned into fuel, exactly the same amount of carbon dioxide will enter the environment when the engine burns it. This action is known as “Carbon Neutral”, since there is an identical exchange in the use of co2 by the plant and the discharge by its engine. Burning non-renewable fuels continually increases the CO2 load of the environment, because CO2 from fossil oil was absorbed by plants millions of years ago.

Transposed:

If you decide to switch to this fuel, you don’t necessarily have to go from regular to full bio in one step. You can buy a mix of biofuel and regular diesel, if you live in Europe you probably already use 20% biofuel as commercially available fuels are required to contain at least this amount in their composition. While most modern engines can use fuel in its pure form without modification, older engines may need a conversion. This is because older engines tend to have natural rubber seals and biodiesel degrades rubber over time. Modern engines with their synthetic silicone rubber components are not affected.

Better performance:

Many people who use biodiesel report that their vehicles start better and travel much smoother. So the advantages of this fuel definitely outnumber the disadvantages. This type of technology can potentially be applied to many types of motor vehicles and applications: trucks, boats, buses, trains, vans, construction machinery, agricultural machinery, generators and automobiles; in fact, anything that runs on normal polluting diesel can almost instantly be made greener just by switching to this fuel.

An additional favorable effect of this renewable fuel will be the improvement in the useful life of the vehicle’s power plant. This is a significantly cleaner fuel, so the damaging effect of soot and sulfur deposits on the engine is drastically reduced, plus it has a much better natural lubrication effect that reduces wear. All of this means that you will get a much longer life from your car or truck.

As you can see if you wonder how does biodiesel work? It works exactly like normal diesel, with the added benefits of being more environmentally and engine friendly. There are many reasons to run your vehicle on clean renewable biofuel, the benefits are obvious, so what’s stopping you from making the switch today?