Auckland students run diesel engines on coconut oil
08 October 2005
Two Auckland University students say coconut oil could be a way to cut fuel prices in the future.
Samoan Dominic Schwalger and Fijian Penaia Rogoiumari yesterday showed the university’s Faculty of Engineering how diesel engines could be run on coconut oil.
They say their findings could help reduce fuel prices, especially in the Pacific Islands where coconuts are plentiful.
“The combination of a ready supply of coconuts, rising fuel prices and ease of manufacture makes this a real option for villagers who need to run equipment like generators or boat engines,” Mr Rogoiumari said.
Mr Schwalger and Mr Rogoiumari say diesel engines can run on pure coconut oil when blended with traditional diesel. They have also analysed engine performance and exhaust emissions.
Mr Schwalger said coconut oil was produced when the dried white flesh of the coconut was pressed.
“At that point, it is ready for use and is utilised already in various ways such as cooking oil and suntan lotions,” he said.
AdvertisementAdvertisement"What we have shown is that without any modification to either the pure oil or the engine you can use it as an alternative fuel."
Coconut oil has been experimented with as a fuel substitute in Asia and the Pacific Islands in the past two years.
I believe the first Otto cycle engine (or at least one of the early ones) was designed to run off of vegetable oil. I did see a show a few months ago where a guy in Colorado has modified the engine in his car to run off of vegetable oil. He goes around to the various resturants in his town gathering the oil from their deep fat friers, strains it out and uses it. Apparently the exhaust smells like french fries!
Of course New Zealamd, Australia and the Pacific Islands have been experimenting with or using bio-mass for running diesel engines. I knew a fellow in Melbourne who was collecting the grease from grease traps in restaurants, processing it only slightly as I believe and then running farm tractors on it.
So no sooner did I close my browser and go get a coffee, than I picked up MAKE magazine ( http://makezine.com ) and it fell open at an article on biodiesel! It talks about making your own biodiesel at home uing pre-loved vegetable oil. The article teaser can be found here.
This sort of thing hits the news about every 10 years or so, dating back into the 1930’s. Last time I looked into this, ummmm 1978, I think I calculated petroleum based fuel would have to be $2.50 a gallon to make it practical. That would be, what, about $4.00 a gallon by today’s prices? So fuel prices are finally getting high enough that might make it work this time around.
There are a number of people running diesel cars on fryer oil. You have to start the engine on regular fuel and turn it off on the same. But they are supposed to run fine. A guy passed me on the highway a few days ago with a sticker on his VW diesel saying he was running on veg. oil. I wonder if the exhaust from the coconut oil is sweeter smelling!
Cool research. I guess weighing the cost - it could prove beneficial as a fuel stretcher. Depends on cost of producing X thousands/millions of gallons of it. And the corresponding impact on the coconut supply. As far as the smell - well
I can see it now - I am pulling up to a crossing - suddenly I smell a “Mounds Bar ™” - then WHAM. Later as I am talking to the ambulance attendant - I say - well I thought I smelled a giant candy bar - then I was hit by a train.
Then they drop the gurney on the way to the ambulance.[:I]
Biodiesel is a growing movement–lots of people are interested in biodiesel as an alternative fuel. Heck, we could grow the diesel fuel we need to run our trains on farms in the Midwest instead of shipping it from the Middle East…
Willie Nelson, the country singer, hawks a product called Bio-Willie on RFD-TV all the time. Several filling stations in Texas are said to be selling Bio-Willie diesel fuel. What he doesn’t mention in his advertisements is the cost and whether it’s more, less, or the same as straight diesel fuel.
Although he doesn’t say exactly what the “bio” part is, the commercial has a clip of soybeans being harvested, so it’s probably soy sauce.
The “bio” in “biodiesel” indicates that it is made from vegetable oil–in the case of “Bio-Willie,” if the commercial includes clips of soybeans I’d guess that it is made from soybean oil.
It probably does cost a bit more than diesel, but not that much more these days, it’s clean-burning, and we don’t have to donate money to Osama bin Laden’s family to buy some…