Biofuel Facts
Biofuels burn cleaner than gasoline, resulting in fewer greenhouse gas emissions, and are fully biodegradable, unlike some fuel additives.
Biodiesel is the most common biofuel in Europe.
Henry Ford planned to fuel his Model Ts with ethanol, and early diesel engines were shown to run on peanut oil.
Biodiesel yields 93% more energy than the energy invested in its production.
Biofuel can replace much petroleum without impacting food supplies.
If the US devotes all of its corn and soybean to biofuel production, it would meet 12%of US gasoline demand and 6% of US diesel demand.
Biofuel Facts
Understanding Biofuel
It's important to understand what biofuel is and what it is not, the historical context of biofuel around the world, and where we will get our biofuels in the future. You will find the most current energy facts on this website.
Biofuel 101
Biofuels are produced from living organisms or from metabolic by-products (organic or food waste products). In order to be considered a biofuel the fuel must contain over 80 percent renewable materials. It is originally derived from the photosynthesis process and can therefore often be referred to as a solar energy source. There are many pros and cons to using biofuels as an energy source.
Biofuel is defined as solid, liquid or gaseous fuel derived from relatively recently dead biological material and is distinguished from fossil fuels, which are derived from long dead biological material.
Various plants and plant-derived materials are used for biofuel manufacturing. Globally, biofuels are most commonly used to power vehicles, heating homes, and cooking stoves.
Biofuel 201
Using waste biomass to produce energy can reduce the use of fossil fuels, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and reduce pollution and waste management problems.
Edible vegetable oil is generally not used as fuel, but lower quality oil can be used for this purpose. Used vegetable oil is increasingly being processed into biodiesel, or (more rarely) cleaned of water and particulates and used as a fuel.
There are various current issues with biofuel production and use, which are presently being discussed in the popular media and scientific journals. These include: the effect of moderating oil prices, the "food vs fuel" debate, carbon emissions levels, sustainable biofuel production, deforestation and soil erosion, impact on water resources, human rights issues, poverty reduction potential, biofuel prices, energy balance and efficiency, and centralised versus decentralised production models.