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| Biodiesel Markets & Users |
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Who Uses Diesel Power
- Transit Buses – 76,000 in the U.S.
- School Buses – 460,000 in the U.S.
- Over 3% of personal vehicles in the U.S. (Predicted
to climb to 10% over the next 5-10 years)
- Commercial Trucks
- Electrical Power Generators
- Farm Equipment
- Marine Industry
- Trains
- Other Heavy Equipment
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To find out
more, click on the categories below:
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Commercial Truck Fleets
Biodiesel is a cleaner, safer, cost effective fuel alternative for large commercial fleets. It operates in all conventional diesel engines, requires no special handling and has a full ASTM standard to ensure quality. The lubricity benefits make your engine parts last longer, especially now with the new ultra-low sulfur fuel in the marketplace. Just 2% biodiesel can add 65% more lubricity. Thousands of fleet managers across the country are already enjoying the benefits. It can also help you meet your EPA requirements.
Passenger Vehicles:
Each year, vehicle manufacturers are rolling out new diesel models of some of their most popular models, making it easier than ever to find the right diesel vehicle for your personal use. Today's diesel engines are quieter, cleaner burning and more responsive than earlier diesels. Diesel engines are 30% more fuel efficient than gasoline-powered engines.
Additionally, biodiesel blends (B-20, B-5, B-2) are becoming increasingly available at retail pump stations. They operate in diesel engines just like petroleum diesel. Blends work in any modern diesel engine, with no modifications to the engine or the fuel system. Biodiesel also provides similar horsepower, torque, and mileage as petro diesel. Cars burning biodiesel fuel will emit fewer green house gas emissions. Running biodiesel fuel, which is domestically produced from entirely renewable resources, in your personal vehicle will also contribute to the U.S. economy and further assert our nation’s energy independence.
Transit/City Buses:
Transit fleets report positive experiences with biodiesel. City bus fleets that have used biodiesel include those in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Cincinnati, Ohio and St. Louis, Missouri, with dozens more cities adding a percentage of biodiesel buses to their fleets each year. Bi-State Development Agency in St. Louis conducted one of the first demonstration projects using biodiesel blends in Call-a-Ride vans to evaluate its suitability as a motor fuel. The evaluation revealed that:
- Biodiesel is a viable motor fuel
- Performance and fuel economy were unchanged
- Exhaust emissions improved dramatically
- The fuel was fully compatible with vehicle and fuel dispensing equipment (From the National Biodiesel Board's Official website www.nbb.org).
The use of biodiesel fuel in city transit buses is an important step towards governmental support for a mandated supply of biodiesel production, as well as a significant way to positively impact the environment and reduce our nation’s carbon footprint.
School Buses
School buses are one of the largest mass transit programs in the United States. Every school day, some 440,000 yellow school buses transport more than 24 million children to and from schools and school-related activities. At the current time, the vast majority of the school buses are powered by heavy-duty diesel engines and consume conventional #2 diesel fuel (although a small share of school bus engines now in use are designed for gasoline). Anyone who has ever had to sit in traffic behind a diesel-fueled bus will understand concerns about children who ride buses to and from school each day. Pollution from diesel vehicles has health implications for everyone, especially children. The use of biodiesel can reduce that threat. Because it works in any diesel engine with few or no modifications, biodiesel offers schools a relatively inexpensive option for an immediate solution to air quality concerns. As a result, several thousand school buses in the US are running on blends of biodiesel and reporting success (From the National Biodiesel Board's Official website www.nbb.org).
School Buses
School buses are one of the largest mass transit programs in the United States. Every school day, some 440,000 yellow school buses transport more than 24 million children to and from schools and school-related activities. At the current time, the vast majority of the school buses are powered by heavy-duty diesel engines and consume conventional #2 diesel fuel (although a small share of school bus engines now in use are designed for gasoline). Anyone who has ever had to sit in traffic behind a diesel-fueled bus will understand concerns about children who ride buses to and from school each day. Pollution from diesel vehicles has health implications for everyone, especially children. The use of biodiesel can reduce that threat. Because it works in any diesel engine with few or no modifications, biodiesel offers schools a relatively inexpensive option for an immediate solution to air quality concerns. As a result, several thousand school buses in the US are running on blends of biodiesel and reporting success (From the National Biodiesel Board's Official website www.nbb.org).
Electrical Power Generators:
In an effort to find a new way to reduce emissions from standby emergency generators, a 6 megawatt biofueled backup power system was installed for the University of California, Riverside's 2001 pilot program. As the power crisis in California in 2001 unfolded and forced many facilities to deploy portable diesel generators to protect critical operations against blackouts, Southern States Power Company helped the state reduce harmful emissions that normally are associated with this type of equipment. Temporary backup petroleum diesel-fueled generators typically operate in emergencies without the benefit of exhaust after-treatment to reduce emissions. Using alternative fuels for these necessary backup power sources is a cost effective method of protecting the environment. Fueled on 100% biodiesel (B100), these generators help reduce emissions compared to petroleum diesel in several key areas. Hydrocarbons, a contributing factor in the localized formation of smog and ozone, and sulfur emissions, a major component of acid rain, are essentially eliminated with the use of B100. The exhaust emissions of carbon monoxide, a poisonous gas, are about 50% lower in biodiesel than carbon monoxide emissions from petroleum diesel. Particulate matter, a human health hazard, is reduced by a third, with the smaller particulates reduced by over two thirds.
Other electrical power generators are following suit. In July of 2007, FOX sports announced that they would be using B-20 biodiesel fuel to run all their on-site generators, trucks and equipment for all the major sporting events they will broadcast in the next year including the MLB All-Star Game, The World Series and the Super Bowl.
Marine Fleets:
Biodiesel is non-toxic, biodegradable and will not harm marine life. It will help protect sensitive waterways as well as reduce irritants and odors for humans. It is safer to handle and transport as it has a flash point of 260 degrees as compared to 125 degrees for petro diesel. Biodiesel helps speed the degradation of petro diesel when blended together. It is domestically produced and works in all areas of the marine industry including recreational, commercial and government fleets. In the spring of 2007 local North Charleston shrimp boat captain Wayne Magwood purchased a batch of experimental-grade fuel from Southeast BioDiesel (SEBD) to run in his diesel engine boat. When interviewed by a local ABC news affiliate, Magwood reported that while using the SEBD-produced biodiesel fuel, his engine ran quieter and produced less smoke and smell than when he uses petro-diesel fuel. Magwood has recommended SEBD fuel to other local shrimpers and several have already placed orders for fuel with us.
Farm Equipment
Farmers are becoming a strong customer base for biodiesel. Biodiesel provides an opportunity for farmers to create demand for the crops they grow through on-farm use. Farmers' commitment to biodiesel is reflected in their $25 million investment in the product through checkoff dollars. OEM's such as John Deere and New Holland are endorsing the use of biodiesel in their equipment. Farmers recognize that biodiesel is a high-quality product to use in their farm equipment. Even low blends of biodiesel like B2 and B5 offer exceptional lubricity, thus slowing engine wear and tear. Plus it is a cleaner-burning fuel that is friendlier to the user and the environment. See our technical articles page for more information. The biodiesel industry has publicly encouraged all farmers to ask their fuel distributors to carry biodiesel in at least a two percent blend (B-2). Building demand at a grassroots level is critical to the addition of biodiesel to terminals on a large national scale. Although biodiesel is compatible with existing diesel technology, including diesel tanks and other infrastructure, some petroleum distributors may choose to have separate tanks for biodiesel. Adding those tanks now to meet farmer demand will help ensure that the infrastructure is in place to meet future demand from the general public (from the National Biodiesel Board's Official website www.nbb.org).
Mining Equipment:
MSHA conducted sampling at 31 mines to evaluate the effectiveness of several different control technologies for diesel particulate matter. These control technologies included, among others, using biodiesel fuel. Below are the results of the sampling done at the mines using biodiesel:
MSHA entered into a collaborative effort to test DPM emissions and exposures when using various blends of biodiesel fuels in an underground stone mine. The initial study was conducted in two phases: a 20% biodiesel and a 50% biodiesel blend of recycled vegetable oil, each mixed with 100% low sulfur No. 2 standard diesel fuel. Baseline conditions were established using low sulfur No. 2 standard diesel fuel. In a third phase of the study, a 50% blend of new soy biodiesel fuel was tested. Area samples were collected at shafts to assess equipment emissions. Results indicate that significant reductions in emissions and worker exposure were obtained for all biodiesel mixtures. These reductions were in terms of both elemetnal and total carbon. Preliminary results for the 20% and 50% recycled vegetable oil indicated 30% and 50% reductions in DPM emissions and exposures, respectively. Preliminary results for the tests on the 50% blend of new soy biodiesel fuel showed about a 30% reduction in DPM emissions and exposures. Following the success of the biodiesel tests at Maysville Mine, Carmeuse requested assistance in continuing the biodiesel optimization testing at their Black River Mine. In this test, two biodiesel blends along with a baseline test were made. For each test, personal exposures and the ine exhaust were tested for two shifts. The two biodiesel blends included a 35% recycled vegetable oil and a 35% blend of new soy oil. Preliminary results for both the 35% recycled vegetable oil and the 35% blend of new soy biodiesel fuel showed about a 30% reduction in DPM emissions and exposures (from the National Biodiesel Board's Official website www.nbb.org).
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