'Biodiesel' fuel made of soy beans and vegetable oils could clean up bus
emissions
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Copyright (c) 1996 The Boston Globe
QUINCY, Mass. (Nov 21, 1996 01:06 a.m. EST) -- Finally, a bus fuel that even
the Jolly Green Giant could love.
Twin Rivers Technologies officially entered the race to clean up America's
smelly public buses Wednesday after federal regulators approved its "biodiesel"
bus fuel made from soy beans and other vegetable oils. Instead of a black
cloud, buses burning biodiesel leave behind, at worst, the faint scent of
french fries.
Now, Twin Rivers, which has been testing its cleaner-burning fuel in Boston
since 1995, plans to market a blend of biodiesel and diesel fuel to the owners
of the nation's 56,000 city buses as a way to meet soot-reducing goals of the
Clean Air Act.
"The biggest thing the Environmental Protection Agency approval approval gives
us is legitimacy," said James Ricci, Twin Rivers president. Until now, he said,
bus operators have had little incentive to buy the more expensive fuel because
they didn't know if the EPA would accept it as a pollution-fighting tool.
Publicly owned transit systems in 48 urban areas are under federal orders to
replace or repair old buses over the next few years so they release less
particulate matter, the black cloud that often spews from the tailpipe on
acceleration.
Besides being obnoxious, the particles may be fatal. Harvard University
researchers estimate that fine particles such as bus exhaust kill 2,500 people
each year in New England, mostly the old, the young and those with respiratory
problems. "Soot pollution is a serious health problem," said Lucy Edmondson, an
EPA transportation specialist in Boston.
Twin Rivers faces big challenges in its effort to enter the burgeoning market
for cleaner alternatives to diesel fuel, not the least of which is a late
start. Companies have been peddling natural gas-powered and prototype electric
buses for years, and the EPA already has approved three other mechanical
changes to conventional buses to comply with the Clean Air Act.
But officials at the Massachusetts Port Authority, which runs biodiesel in 35
shuttle buses at Logan Airport, predicted the fuel will be marketable because
it is easy to use. Unlike other alternative fuels, such as natural gas or
electric batteries, biodiesel requires only minor mechanical modifications.
"It's been virtually seamless. Biodiesel is the longest-running and most
successful component of our alternative fuel program," said Douglas Wheaton,
manager for aviation transportation at Massport.
Mixed with 80 percent regular diesel fuel, biodiesel roughly doubles total fuel
costs from 65 cents a $1.25 gallon, and requires installation of a catalytic
converter, which costs several thousands more. But compared to the
$250,000-plus price of a new bus that meets federal standards, biodiesel is a
bargain, say Twin Rivers officials.
In fact, the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority has found it would save $14
million over a decade by using biodiesel on its 1,000 buses rather than buying
new vehicles. Ricci hopes the MBTA will become Twin Rivers' first major
customer, allowing the company to gear up for mass production.
Biodiesel, the brainchild of Midwestern soy bean farmers who invested $9
million in product research, ultimately may have a short heyday, admits Ricci.
Other alternative fuels pollute the air even less, while ingenious devices such
as flywheels are more energy-efficient.
But for bus fleets that want to clean up the air now while alternative
technologies to develop, Ricci argues that biodiesel is the answer. "Biodiesel
fuel is the simplest, lowest-cost option for Clean Air Act compliance," he said.
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