I plan on setting my truck to handle b100 (if I can find it) I have read a few research papers that claim it increases HP anywhere from 6-10%. So id like to try running it and see how it does. I really think biofuels are going to be a big part of diesel engines in the future so might as well be prepared.
Yes, but good and bad. You can swing the fuel for more power, but there is always a gain/loss balance. When we made fuel, both bio and plastics, we could simply choose what power/efficiency/ clean burn whatever we wanted.
Its like when guys make wmo fuel by cutting filtered oil with a percentage of gasoline. Want a hair more power, add a hair more gas. Adding cetane is really same thing in diesel. People buy expensive additives as cetane booster and if they just dump in a quart of gasoline they get same effect. It really is done that way at the tank farm (fuel mixing plants).
Bio is a wide term. What you get in Ohio is gonna be different than whats in Iowa or Colorado. And in an area where there is many competitors making it the differences will be within a few miles. So learning about the differences and building to suit for it is definitely a good idea. That’s why I am always saying sae30r9. I am sure folks here went out of their way to get it from that recommendation, yet are somewhere that it is 1-2 levels above what they need for fuel in their area. And if they never go on road trips - could be they wasted $10 more than needed- but it makes all the difference for folks running pure corn juice within a couple years.
I used to love the gm ffm. Simple, efficient, compact. Now, not so much. Not knowing the alcohols or how much water is in the fuel in suspension is a serious issue. Back when we had pure petroleum fuel the water blocking ability of the ffm was ok and if/when the light came on you could drain and drive and never think twice. But with water in suspension the water can no longer make the electrical conduction like it should. It is spread out among all the fuel instead of separating and getting trapped. Now all the water is getting to the ip and injectors. So yeah, amazing water separation is important.
There is always outside contamination possible (dirt in the filling stations tank). Petroleum fuel is made by cooking crude oil into a gaseous state (think steam not gasoline) and it gets cooled and condensed back into the different liquids. Then transported to local tank farms where additives all processed the same way are blended in liquid form. The chance of contamination in that fuel process is very very low. Bio is a different story and depending what type of bio it is, and what type of modifiers is used, and most importantly how willing each company is to spend profit to ensure cleanliness all is huge factor. Johnny dumping in the chemicals might set the 2 buckets in the dirt a second then accidentally knock some in when he is pouring it in after climbing on the ladder to reach the lid.
Anyone of you could go buy food from a store, grow in your back yard, use your table scraps and make then sell to the open public your own bio fuel. Depending on your local rules for any business is wether it is restricted, inspected, or a free for all. Here, state of Nv says business license and tax id. No special inspection required. Clark county here adds fire marshall inspections for all businesses. But they don’t inspect process of operation. Las Vegas says must be proper neighborhood as does each city in this county. But Henderson allows fuel production and separation as does City of North Las Vegas, but not Las Vegas. Boulder City council didn’t even have an answer- like we were speaking Greek. We set up in all 3 (never Boulder City) with plastic to fuel, and there was no regulated inspection about fuel quality even in existence. But because it wasn’t crude to fuel- the EPA stopped us from selling. Not based on purity, quality, etc but because it isn’t a federally accepted fuel- basically they don’t know it is a fuel. One of the owners also owns a bio fuel production company. One time, the epa asked for a sample of fuel for bio fuel- he held it up to the ceiling light looking at clarity, smelled it, rubbed a little between his thumb and finger. Then handed it back- end of inspection. We were all laughing watching the security camera recording of it. But biofuel is a known and accepted fuel by the epa. So he sells it on the open market. There is no tests, inspections, etc of the fuel on any regular basis from his biofuel company. He sells that fuel to over 20 fuel stations in Nv.
When I worked at 76, part of my job (all the mechanics took turns) was to go to the tank farm for the quarterly inspections. The manager of that area had to shut down the automated system and operate everything by hand, so we were there to assist. Purity test, octane/cetane, flashpoint, ch count, contamination count- literally every single test you can imagine gets done on site with the inspector present and reading the meters himself while the manager or us did the tests. This all goes back to the major oil company wars trying to knock out smaller companies from competing back decades before I was born. That same 76 oils outfit did bio at the time I was there also- remember I mentioned the peanut oil fiasco? NEVER RUN PEANUT OIL!!! Then when the alcohol fuels of the 70’s came out (gasahol and such) cars were exploding after leaving fuel stations because mixes weren’t right. So quality inspections for hydrocarbon fuels became mandated. There is no fed mandatory inspections on the fuel made from bio to ensure repeated quality- None. That 76 stuff was in the 90’s, the plastic to fuel stuff and his bio stuff was 2015. Maybe different in your area? But driving road trips..?
So it is caveat emptor (buyer beware) legally on biofuel. You do the research on the supplier near you. You should all diy cloud/ gel point and flashpoint your own fuel if you are going to run it imo.
Good bio fuel has benefits for sure. So imo getting a wazzo lift pump filter system and 100% water stopping unit is crucial. Fass said theirs will stop flow when full. Idk about airdogg for sure but i think they said it will bypass- call them to verify an I suggest getting it in an email from them so they don’t just guess but have to verify.
Water in fuel tests becomes critical but you have to know which process/ chemical is used to make it. 95% will work with the common little kits available from any of the biofuel production companies out there (the little metal can with psi gauge and chemicals that come with it). But when you get into the 99-100% bio- you beed to know which reactor is needed.
Things like the fuel water separator funnel are nice, but only stop water that is not in suspension of the fuel because of the alcohols. The DOE says b100 can have up to 20% alcohol. So your “pure” biodiesel is really up to 30% methanol. Check their website. Wanna guess where that extra power can come from? More importantly how much water can 20% meth hold? 10%. Alcohol saturation is 50% by mass last chemistry class I took. Any drinkers here know about mixed drinks with water in it or bars that cut their drinks for profit? So your 1 gallon of b100 can actually be 1/10 water. Obviously that won’t tun right and something went wrong for it to happen- but 10% of your fuel getting through your ip and injectors can be water.
Yes many say I am anti biofuel. I would say I am VERY leery. I am not big oil. I get no kickbacks, make no money off it. Very pro- alternative fuel. But I have seen engine damage into the hundreds of thousands. You can accidentally fill up a 6.5 truck empty tank with gasoline and start the engine, run till it dies, drain all the gas and refill with diesel. A new fuel filter and drive again with no noticeable effects. Do it 3-4 times a year on same engine and you will still get 150,000 miles for that system without blinking an eye. Try that with 1% water. Ruin an ip, collect the fuel and prove to the station they have 18% water in their diesel and see if you get any compensation. sometimes people win the lottery but odds are not in your favor.
Learn how to make your own biofuel. Even if the work isn’t worth the savings and mess to diy- you know what to look for when you buy it.
propelfuels.com
en.wikipedia.org
