About biodiesel
From Tacoma Biodiesel
Here is a brief overview of what biodiesel is, including several links to further information.
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Biodiesel Overview
Biodiesel is a vegetable-oil based alternative to petroleum diesel that can be used in any diesel engine with no significant modification. In its pure form (B100), it contains no petroleum diesel at all, but can be blended to any percentage. It is an increasingly popular alternative fuel amongst both commercial and consumer markets due to its implications for foreign policy, the domestic economy, and the environment, not to mention its mechanical benefits.
Benefits of Biodiesel
The benefits of using biodiesel are many, giving it good credibility for people of all political persuasions.
Some of the many reasons people are using biodiesel are:
- American made
- Supports farmers
- Lower emissions
- Carbon neutrality
- Reduces dependence of foreign oil
- Reduces dependence on oil in general
- Non-toxic
- Biodegradeable
- Good for engines
- Exhaust smells better
- Can be made at home
- Virtually non-flammable
Using Biodiesel
Have a diesel car? Then biodiesel is a great choice. But if you don't have a diesel car and don't plan on purchasing one, there may be other ways that you can use biodiesel.
Uses for Biodiesel
Here are some of the possible uses for biodiesel.
Diesel Engines
Biodiesel can be run in any diesel engine, at any percentage, with minimal modification (see the FAQ for more information). This means that you can use biodiesel in your car, truck, van, RV, or even your boat.
See the following pages for more information:
Oil Furnaces
Biodiesel can also be used in place of home heating oil in your oil-fired furnace. Typically a blend is used unless modifications are made to the burner.
See the home heating page for more information.
Some Notable Local Biodiesel Users
There are many prominent users of biodiesel in the area. Here are a few:
- Tacoma Garbage and Recycling
- Using biodiesel blend in their trucks.
- Metro Transit (Seattle/King County)
- Using biodiesel blends and experimenting with diesel-electric hybrid buses.
- Intercity Transit (Olympia/Thurston County)
- Using biodiesel blend for buses.
- Port of Seattle
- Using biodiesel blend (B20) for dockside loading and container-moving equipment, provided by Seattle Biodiesel.
- Holden Village
- Ecumenical Christian renewal retreat in the Cascade Mountains, using biodiesel blend in buses.
See also this page, courtesy of the Northwest Biodiesel Network, listing a number of Northwest business using or otherwise supporting biodiesel.
Where to Get Biodiesel
A number of local retail locations exist for the purchase of biodiesel. See our purchase page for more details.
More Information
Still want more information? Here are some other links to check out.
Biodiesel Basics
- National Biodiesel Board
- Biodiesel advocacy organization
- BiodieselNOW.com
- Great web site with much information and great user forums
- Wikipedia Biodiesel Page
- Excellent entry in the Wikipedia about biodiesel
- How Biodiesel Works
- Great info from the fine folks at HowStuffWorks.com
