Flying on Vegetable Oil
Posted by Charlotte Ramotswe, January 2nd, 2009 - under News.
A passenger plane has successfully completed a two-hour test flight partly powered by vegetable oil. Read more here.
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Scientists have discovered the Arctic ocean seabed is leaking huge amounts of methane into the atmosphere. The research published in the journal Science shows the permafrost under the East Siberian Arctic shelf, which was thought to be a barrier sealing methane, is perforated. Read more here. (1)
NYT: Pachauri Faces Credibility Siege
The New York Times is reporting that: Dr. Pachauri and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change are now under intense scrutiny, facing accusations of scientific sloppiness and potential financial conflicts of interest from climate skeptics, right-leaning politicians and even some mainstream scientists. More here. (1)
Phil Jones Guilty, But
The university at the centre of the climate change row over stolen e-mails broke the law by refusing to hand over its raw data for public scrutiny. B ut… Read more here. (0)
Banks Leave Carbon Market
Banks and investors are pulling out of the carbon market after the failure to make progress at Copenhagen on reaching new emissions targets after 2012. Read more here. (0)
UK Met Office Can't Forecast Weather
The UK Met Office is debating what to do with its long-term and seasonal forecasting after criticism for failing to predict extreme weather. It was predicted that this winter would be warmer than average – yet it has been unusually cold. Read more here. (2)
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Posted by Charlotte Ramotswe, January 2nd, 2009 - under News.
A passenger plane has successfully completed a two-hour test flight partly powered by vegetable oil. Read more here.
It would be OK provided it didn’t fly to high and get too cold.
From NY times on Christmas Day:
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/26/business/26winter.html?ref=business
“In January 2007, a bus stalled in the middle of the night on Interstate 70 in the Colorado mountains. The culprit was a 20 percent biodiesel blend that congealed in the freezing weather, according to John Jones, the transit director for the bus line, Summit Stage. (Biodiesel is a diesel substitute, typically made from vegetable oil, that is used to displace some fossil fuels.)”
Sorry, passengers, our fuel is frozen – we’re going down…
Biodiesel has another little nasty:
“Even though for years biodiesel has been heralded as a lubricity additive helping keep fuel system components, like the moving parts inside the fuel injection systems moving smoothly, the bitter irony here is that, when post injected, it tends to dilute engine oil and interacts with additives and increases the possibility of engine wear”
http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/article.jsp?article_id=2290&q=&page=3
Post injection is the late and multiple introduction of fuel during the engine cycle, often referred to as common rail.
Sorry, warranty doesn’t cover dodgy fuel!