Biodiesel Year Round
Energy Initiative:
In a sustainability effort, the UW-River Falls campus has looked for year-round use of biodiesel fuel to power our tractors and sidewalk sweeper/snow plows.
The Experiment:
Pure biodiesel “gels” or moves from a liquid state to that of semi-solid or jelly-like state when cooled, rendering it useless. Currently students are testing various mixes of biodiesel and petroleum to determine which blend can be run in our engines during the cold Wisconsin winters. Preliminary results as of October 27, 2008 conducted on campus are summarized in Table 1. The research performed and analyzed is an important step for future expansion.
Table 1: Percent Biodiesel vs. Temperature
|
Temperature (ºF) at Which Gelling Occurs |
100 |
30 to 32 |
80 |
30 to 24 |
60 |
24 to 19 |
50 |
24 to 19 |
40 |
8 to 5.9 |
20 |
5.9 to 0 |
Petroleum |
0 to -7 |
