Biodiesel and ethanol are both biofuels: fuels produced from organic matter. As global warming worsens and our oil supply dwindles, biodiesel and ethanol have both been touted as the fuels of the future. They are purported to be renewable, and clean.
Because these similarities, people frequently confuse ethanol with biodiesel, and vice versa. Ethanol and biodiesel are completely different substances, with completely different properties. For one, ethanol is an alcohol. It is the alcohol found in beer, wine, vodka, etc.
If you’re concerned about the constantly rising price of vehicle fuel, but still want to use products that are all natural to power your car, you’ll definitely want to learn more about biofuels. You can find many of these fuels in the products that you use every day, For example, vehicle fuel sold in the European Union contains 5% biofuel by law.
Biofuels are defined as a solid, liquid, or gas fuel that is made from biological materials that have recently died. This makes them different from fossil fuels, which are produced from biological animals and plants that have died years ago.
As you’re biting into that nice, juicy king-size burger, have you ever thought how much you’re contributing to global warming?
I hadn’t. Cattle, though, are a major problem for the environment. As cows are busy munching away in their pastures, their multiple stomachs are producing methane.
Methane is a particularly potent greenhouse gas, 25 times more powerful than carbon dioxide for global warming. According to The Journal of Animal Science, livestock produce between 250 and 500 litres of methane every single day! At the top end of the estimate, that enough to fill 250 large bottles of Coke.
‘We should be treating the whole issue of climate change with a far greater degree of priority’
- Prince Charles, 27 October 2005
Pity then that Prince Charles doesn’t heed his own advice and look at his own carbon footprint and its effect on global warming..
In April 2009, the heir to the British throne took a five day trip around Europe to promote the UK Government’s global warming policies. Unfortunately, he chartered a private Airbus A319 to transport him and his entourage between Rome, Venice and Berlin.
