My grand father purchased a T-Model Ford and took it for a jungle trip to terai jungles during 1930’s. On the way back fuel finished and driver got some food oil(mostly mustard) from tribal village inside the forest. It ran smoothly with lights bright all the way back to the city of Gonda(UP). Family who were waiting anxiously for him for several hours could not recognise it as it sounded and glowed differently. Unfortunately we could not see the historic vehicle as it was sold for mere 45 rupees after few years.
Rudolf Diesel, the inventor of the diesel engine, designed it to run on vegetable and seed oils like hemp; he actually ran the thing on peanut oil for the 1900 World’s Fair. Henry Ford used hemp to not only construct cars but also fuel them. Hemp fuel is biodegradable; so oil spills become fertilizer not eco-catastrophes. Hemp fuel does not contribute to sulphur dioxide air poisoning. Other noxious emissions like carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons are radically slashed by using “biodiesel.
Oils from plants needs to undergo trans esterification to become bio diesel which is an expensive process as the cost and time involved is much more but using straight vegetable oils(mostly non-palatable) blended with petro diesel can give us some time to innovate. This blend reduces pollution to some extent.
Technical comparison of Biodiesel and Petro-diesel
| Specification | Petro-diesel | Biodiesel |
| Engine modification | No change | No change in blends |
| Safety of storage | Risky since inflammable | Safe since high flash point |
| Combustion point (degree Celsius) | 550C | 1920C |
| Engine maintenance | Lubricant needed | Self lubricant |
| Exhaust gases | CO2 + CO + SO2 + NO2 | CO2 + NO2 |
| Kinematic viscosity (CentiStokes) | 4.8 cSt | 2.0-8.0 cSt |
| Calorific value (energy in joules) | 48.1MJ/kg | 38.86MJ/kg |
| Fuel price (2Q 2013) | Rs.48.00/ltr | Rs.58.00/ltr |
Source: Tree Oils India | http://thealternative.in/environment/biodiesel-the-future-of-sustainable-fuels/
B20 or the blend of -diesel with straight vegetable oil (SVO-non eatable like neem mahua or pongamia or palm soya corn oils) in a ratio of 80:20 gives 20 % less CO and SO2 as bio fuels burn cleaner then petro fuels, decreases need for engine oils.
In 2015 Karnataka Chief minister inaugurated buses using B20 for the state transport and the figures shown for decrease in cost and pollution are very promising (read).
![BUS%20WOMEN[1]](https://i2.wp.com/www.greenmoksha.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/BUS-WOMEN1.jpg)
From a fleet of 8200 buses KSRTC plans to operate 1500 ones on bio fuel. If bio-diesel is introduced to all buses in state it can save 55 crore a year.
There are many options for plant oil based fuels all across the world. Best ones should be indigenous to the land, hardy ,needing little or no care with high yield and several by products. It should also not compete with regular farming rather complement it.
Ford And Deisel Never Intended Cars To Use Gasoline
The “crude” truth — diesel engines — oil companies’ great fear
henry ford’s hemp car:video: ford & diesel used hemp oil
http://www.goodreturns.in/news/2015/07/06/tsrtc-decides-convert-35-depots-run-biod-372115.html