March 28, 2024

10 reasons to use biodiesel

National Biodiesel Board sets vision

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — The National Biodiesel Conference and Expo was held virtually Jan. 18-21.

Industry leaders shared how they intend to keep momentum rising in the next decade to meet the National Biodiesel Board’s vision of 6 billion gallons by 2030.

Their vision includes having biodiesel, renewable diesel and renewable jet fuel to be recognized as mainstream low-carbon fuel options with superior performance and emission characteristics.

The goal: In on-road, off-road, air-transportation, electricity-generation and home-heating applications, use will exceed 6 billion gallons by 2030, eliminating over 35 million metric tons of CO2 equivalent greenhouse gas emissions annually.

With advancements in feedstock, use will reach 15 billion gallons by 2050.

The NBB shared 10 reasons to use biodiesel:

1. Biodiesel is America’s first domestically produced, commercially available advanced biofuel and meets Environmental Protection Agency requirements for inclusion and use.

2. U.S. biodiesel reduces lifecycle carbon emissions on average 80% compared to petrodiesel, making it the best carbon reduction tool of any liquid fuel commercially available.

3. Biodiesel has the highest energy balance of any commercially available U.S. fuel.

4. Biodiesel is produced from a variety of renewable resources, such as plant oils, animal fats, recycled grease and even algae, making it one of the most sustainable fuels on the planet.

5. Biodiesel production reduces our dependence on foreign oil from unstable parts of the world, while expanding and diversifying our domestic refinery capacity.

6. Biodiesel is biodegradable, non-toxic, burns cleaner than petrodiesel and is better for your health. Compared to petrodiesel, biodiesel reduces black smoke particulates, carbon monoxide and harmful unburned hydrocarbons that cause smog.

7. Biodiesel helps the U.S. economy and improves balance of trade. Using biodiesel creates added outlets for farm-based products and high-paid manufacturing jobs in rural parts of our country.

8. Using biodiesel is easy. B20 and lower blends are a drop-in replacement for petrodiesel. They can be used in any diesel vehicle without modification, according to manufacturers’ recommendations, and dispensed through existing fueling stations.

9. Biodiesel production is guided by stringent ASTM fuel specifications, developed through years of testing.

10. The biodiesel industry has an excellent fuel quality program called BQ-9000. BQ-9000 certified biodiesel producers, marketers, retailers and laboratories help ensure that only the highest quality biodiesel meeting ASTM specifications gets put into your fuel tanks.

Learn more at www.nbb.org.

Erica Quinlan

Erica Quinlan

Field Editor