By biofuel one means any type of fuel source that has its origins in biological materials. Besides, some globally famous biofuels that act as an alternative to gasoline are ethanol and biodiesel. Ethanol, full name: ethyl alcohol (C2H5OH), is also known as grain alcohol. Because it is mostly derived with the help of a distillation process that involves grain crops like corn or soybeans as key ingredients.
But you can also use any other plant material (biomass) like leaves, woodchips, wild grasses, and even trees to create ethanol. Furthermore, when being used in vehicles like cars and farming machinery like Kubota Tractor, ethanol is mixed with a small amount of gasoline to improve fuel efficiency. The industrial name of the resulting fuel is E85, as it contains 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline.
Biodiesel
Biodiesel is another form of biofuel that has its origins in plant or animal-based fats and it can easily replace fossil fuels in a regular diesel engine. In fact, the very first diesel engine that ran on biodiesel was developed by Rudolf Diesel back in the 19th century and it ran on peanut oil, a variety of biodiesel. Going into more detail, Biodiesel makes use of a chemical process famous by the name transesterification to transform fats namely vegetable oil & set-up animal fats into a clean-burning and recyclable fuel.
In addition to that, Biodiesel offers nearly the same calorific value as regular diesel but burns in an environmentally friendly way. Also, pure biodiesel, aka B100, produces 75 percent fewer CO2 emissions than regular diesel. Not only that, when bought biodiesel is as cheap as gas, but if you can procure it from a donated source — like recycled fryer oil from a restaurant — then it’s almost free for you.
Biofuels Pose No Threat To Food Crops
Over the past few years that went by, biofuels are increasingly being seen as a threat to food crops by a section of society. To be precise, for some a renewable energy source that came from organic matter means a magic wand in humanity’s hands in its fight against climate change. But, meanwhile, there is a section in society that believes these biofuels to be an active threat. Because the crops that we are using to produce biofuels are giving direct competition to food crops when it comes to agricultural land and water.
But this is a made-up conflict with no real base. As there is no choice between food and fuel and humanity is in equal need of both. Besides, when provided with the right type of atmosphere, biofuels can prove themselves to be a reliable means to improve food security by offering poor farmers with a viable and affordable energy source.
Biofuels Have Become A Part Of Life
Biofuels in reality have become an inseparable part of daily human life. With their applications only to experience an exponential rise in the time to come. According to a recent report that was made public by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and (FAO) Food and Agricultural Organization. Biofuels counted for nearly three percent of the total transport fuel used on planet earth. Also, while these figures will remain unchanged, we can expect both biofuel production and consumption to increase in the time to come as the global market for transport fuels expands.
Underdeveloped Nations Have A Lot Of Gain
In some land-locked nations on the African continent, gasoline prices are three times the global average, hence making fuel prices one of the main hurdles standing in their nation’s overall agricultural growth. Furthermore, when these economies are introduced to biofuels they stand to benefit a lot. Like they will experience a boost in overall productivity and generate new employment opportunities, especially in rural areas. The resulting effect could be even stronger if the extra requirement for feedstock brought up by biofuels is met by family farmers using farming machines like Valdo Tractor and small-scale producers.
Conclusion
In all, at the individual level, a lot of flexibility could also be built in at the pump, by promoting flex-fuel vehicles like the ones that are already being used in Brazil. Additionally, if vehicles come factory fitted with engines that can run both on traditional fossil fuels or blends with high percentages of biofuels. Then, consumers on a global scale can comfortably adjust to changes in market fuel prices by switching between one or the other.
Lastly, this is also a reality that striking the right balance will not be easy. But if we use our collective knowledge, rope in developing countries’ smallholder farmers in this exercise, and keep our focus on reducing poverty and protecting the unsafe section of society, we can have more fuel at our disposal, more food, and exceptional prosperity for all.