Israelis develop innovative biodiesel product

Headline News

Tuesday, June 26, 2007 by Staff Writer

A small Israeli alternative energy company has managed to develop a biodiesel fuel with all the benefits of current biodiesel fuels, but without the added cost and headache of having to fit older vehicles with special processing devices.

Ormat CEO Yehudit “Dita“ Bronicki told Israel21c that her company's product “has the same features as conventional diesel, but that can be used in engines with a concentration of 100 percent biodiesel and without changing anything in the car.”

Biodiesel is usually made of soy or canola oil, making it a cheap and renewable source of energy. But the prohibitive cost of buying a new car equipped to process the fuel or retrofitting an older vehicle to do the same means that even in countries where biodiesel is already available, like the US, most people are still using conventional fuels.

Bronicki believes that her new biodiesel is the answer to bringing bio-energy to the masses, as it can be used in any existing diesel vehicle without modification.

In addition to providing cheap fuel in a time of ever increasing gas prices, Ormat's biodiesel could also help both the US and Israel drastically reduce their dependency on foreign oil imports.

FREE daily email updates. Sign up »

Be an Ambassador

Israel

for

Learn how »

Israel Today

Print Edition
or
Electronic Edition

Get more coverage »

Post your comment »

Name:
Subject:	*
Comment:
Send comment

[9] COMMENTS:

1 .

Bio schmaio

If corn is needed, the cost of corn will go up. If soy is needed, the cost of soy will go up. If oil is needed, the cost of oil will go up. We are killing Arabs right now to gain control of oil. If it were soy, someone will want control of soy growing regions. The controllers/merchants of the world simply move around the shortages and new industries like the old move the pea under the shell game. Oil alternatives have been around for AGES.

CZE

6/29/2007 1:37 AM

2 .

Beautiful

Shaul, I contemplate the same feeling you have on the food issue. Coffee beans, hemp, and other non-eatable feedstock should be considered. While the solvent properties have an effect on rubber, surely further refinement or additives, which of course drive up costs, can be used for older vehicles. Still, is it not the crude and rude umbilical oil pipe we''re wanting to cut? As far as food crops, American farmers have been paid in the past not to plant because of surplus. This should bring farmers to the power table! Beautiful, the last frontier. Hopefully Isreali botanical research has already developed that "super bean" just for this occasion )

Lingon Silt

6/28/2007 11:23 AM

3 .

New Biodiesel?

I must agree with Danny, the beauty of Biodiesel is that it does not require any modification of any diesel engine and can be used in any concentration up to B100. This is either the reporter not understanding or the company misstating the situation.

Sam

6/27/2007 8:04 PM

4 .

Jake

The Israeli Co said that they are making the fuel out of soy and canola oil which are in abundance and its not going to take food off of tables

Shaul

6/27/2007 12:57 AM

5 .

Starving People and Biofuels

If someone can make fuel from fibrous, non-nutritional products or from waste, that''s one thing. Hopefully this is the case in this article-it doesn''t say.
To make fuel for cars, trucks etc. out of food items is to take food out a starving person''s mouth. Should we not feed the people of the world first?

Jake

6/26/2007 9:14 PM

6 .

biodiesel/esters/cars

I''m not sure I understand what is "new" about Bronicki''s biodiesel. ANY biodiesel (even B100) will work in ANY diesel-fuel powered engine generally without ANY modifications except for some natural rubber fuel lines, etc. on pre-1994 engines (after 1994 almost all engine manufacturers switched to synthetic rubber).

The article also contains misleading information such as "...the prohibitive cost of buying a new care equipped to process the fuel...". This is simply a mis-statement. That is the beauty, the whole point, of biodiesel it works in any diesel engine. If one plans to use biodiesel, one does not have to buy a special or costly car One simply buys a typical, run-of-the-mill diesel engine car.

The article should elaborate on what makes Bronicki''s biodiesel different or unique. Many alternative fuel supporters would be very interested.

danny

6/26/2007 3:58 PM

7 .

Diesel/Alkyl-esters

Actually, the real issue in the various types of biodiesel is it''s effect on the fuel injection system and injectors. With the onset of common rail diesels (high pressure) the properties of lubrication varie on the different blends and often the injection system requires special treatment to surive without lubrication or less.

Roberto

6/26/2007 3:41 PM

8 .

Alkyl-esters

Interesting. The issue with biodiesel and older diesel engines is that it is an alkyl-ester or alcohol. Alcohol eats rubber and most synthetic rubbers. Therefore, any soft, pliable materials exposed to the fuel must be made from alcohol-resistant materials in order to avoid premature failure of the part. (hoses become a gooey, gummy mess) Parts made from a fluoro-elastomer like Viton resist the corrosive properties of biodiesel and last usually as long as their counterpart with regular diesel.

I''m wondering what modifications they could make to an alkyl ester to remove its nature of corroding rubbers and synthetic rubbers? It sounds like it must be some other type of biofuel that is not an alkyl ester that will run in a diesel engine. Often companies will still call these fuels "biodiesel" even though this term refers specifically to alkyl ester based fuels such as methyl esters and ethyl esters.

Powell

6/26/2007 3:20 PM

9 .

Inovative biodiesel

WONDERFUL, FANTASTIC. lets hope the world takes it on!

Thomas

6/26/2007 2:59 PM