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How much biodiesel saves a barrel of oil?
In the real world, without extreme measures, how much diesel comes from a barrel of oil? I'd like to be able to say that "for every XXX gallons of biodiesel I use instead of dino diesel, I save a barrel of imported oil. However, I've been unable to learn how much dino diesel you get from a barrel of crude oil.
Obviously, I am asking a very simplistic question -- it depends on the kind of oil, you get various 'fractions,' diesel and other things, when you 'crack' oil -- but I only need a simplistic answer. So far, in searching the web, the only statement I've found is that "40% of distilled crude oil is gasoline." [Source: http://www.howstuffworks.com/oil-refining4.htm] Nothing for diesel. I am also ignoring the energy cost to produce and transport biodiesel, the effect on the economy and food prices of turning vegetable oil into biodiesel instead of Twinkies, etc. As I said, just a simplistic answer, please. Anyone have a number or a link?
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"Buster" in the '95 Our all-Diesel family 1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car 2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022) Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762 "Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz." -- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970 |
#2
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Do you know how many gallons are in a barrel?
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#4
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a barrel is 55 gallons and that chart shows jet fuel (which is similar to diesel.) IIRC the fuel oil is also diesel, thus up to 27.6% of a barrel is diesel compatible.
so 55/27.6%= 15.18 gal. so 3/4 tank per barrel being optimistic that all possible conversion from the barrel went to your car and not heating a home or flying a plane. Cheers, -nB Buggered up my last edit: That site defines a barrel as 42 gallons, thus each tank of B50 saves a barrel of oil. Each tank of b100 saves nearly 2 barrels of oil. -nB
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'83 300D Turbo Current: ???K mi - 19.2mpg -> 17.4mpg -> 22.9mpg ---> ODO Died bought at: 233.8K mi - 10MPG For $1.00 3.5 cylinders work: 320 320 100 340 280 Got insurance? FarmersReallySucks.Com |
#5
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That's what most people seem to think.
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#6
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Quote:
Do you mean to say saves the diesel component from a barrel of oil? Burning biodiesel does not save the gasoline, naptha, tar etc components of the barrel, only the diesel component. And yes, a barrel = 42 gallons.
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2009 VW TDI Jetta Sportwagon 172k miles (rear-ended harder than Elton John on 8/4/13. Total loss) 1991 Volvo 240 142k miles (T-boned by a stop sign runner. Total loss) |
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"DRUM" = 55 gal.
but a trade 'barrel' has always been 42, ever since the barrels were made of wood and the waste gasoline was dumped out as 'unfit' for use in kerosene lamps.
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1987 300D (230,000 mi on a #14 head-watching the temp gauge and keeping the ghost in the machine) Raleigh NC - Home of deep fried sushi! |
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yes that is what I (and I assume Jeremy5848) mean.
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'83 300D Turbo Current: ???K mi - 19.2mpg -> 17.4mpg -> 22.9mpg ---> ODO Died bought at: 233.8K mi - 10MPG For $1.00 3.5 cylinders work: 320 320 100 340 280 Got insurance? FarmersReallySucks.Com |
#9
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This will give you some idea how complex the real answer is:
http://www.uidaho.edu/bioenergy/NewsReleases/Biodiesel%20Energy%20Balance_v2a.pdf http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=34304 http://www.biodiesel.org/resources/pressreleases/gen/20050721_pimentel_response.pdf ...and many others. The point is, there is no simple answer to your question. |
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Oh well
Craig is right, there really isn't a simple answer. I did find (on the EPA kid's web page!!!)
http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/sources/non-renewable/oil.html#Howused that from one barrel (42 gallons) of crude oil, we can get 7 gallons of diesel, 20 gallons of gasoline, and other things. So I guess it's fair only to say that every gallon of biodiesel saves a gallon of diesel made from crude oil. Even that doesn't touch all of the associated effects -- smog, agriculture, engine wear, etc. -- which will take a lot of beer to figure out (and maybe not even then). Thanks for the excellent links, Craig.
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"Buster" in the '95 Our all-Diesel family 1996 E300D (W210) . .338,000 miles Wife's car 2005 E320 CDI . . 113,000 miles My car Santa Rosa population 176,762 (2022) Total. . . . . . . . . . . . 627,762 "Oh lord won't you buy me a Mercedes Benz." -- Janis Joplin, October 1, 1970 Last edited by Jeremy5848; 02-22-2007 at 11:52 PM. Reason: Add a final sentence |
#11
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It's impossible to provide a simple answer to such a complex question.
You'd need to know where a barrel of oil comes from, how the oil was retrieved from the earth, how it was transported to the refinery, the refinery process itself, then transporting to the fuel supplier. There's a lot of stuff going on there, and each little bit of it is consuming lots and lots of natural resources. You want to talk about the cost of war too?
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-justin 1987 300TD, 1987 300TD 2008 R32, 2000 Passat Wagon |
#12
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Sweet Crude vs. Sour Crude
Quote:
There should be a Petroleum Engineer out there than can explain this far better than I am able to..... SB And, yes, we as USA citizens tend to forget that part of the reason for our involvement in Iraq is to maintain some sort of stability in the crude oil market.
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Diesels: '85 300D, "Max, Blue Benz", 155K, 27.0 MPG '84 190D 2.2, "Eva, Brown Benz", 142K, 40.2 MPG '77 240D (parts car) '67 Eicher ES 202 Tractor "Otto" (2cyl, Air Cooled, 30HP) Gassers: '94 Ford F-150, "Henry", 170K (300 Six) 17.5 MPG '85 190E 2.3, 148K....Parts Car '58 Dodge W300M Powerwagon (Flat Fenders) Less than 10 MPG |
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True enough.
You will get vastly more fuel from Arab Extra Sweet (I've heard of it being burned as fuel-oil straight-up) than from Canadian tar sand. I was trying to provide a fairly simplistic answer to what I knew was a complicated question. Namely based on that graph and figuring you burned the entire fraction that your diesel could burn then you'd get about half a tank per average barrel of oil. -nB
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'83 300D Turbo Current: ???K mi - 19.2mpg -> 17.4mpg -> 22.9mpg ---> ODO Died bought at: 233.8K mi - 10MPG For $1.00 3.5 cylinders work: 320 320 100 340 280 Got insurance? FarmersReallySucks.Com |
#14
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This is a very interesting question. The corresponding question, however, is how much food would be provided from the grain that is used for oil instead of food. If it is a non-edible crop that is used, how much food could be produced from the same amount of cropland?
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#15
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Quote:
Not a whole lot of crop land left now. What is left is for sale.
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RRGrassi 70's Southern Pacific #5608 Fairmont A-4 MOW car 13 VW JSW 2.0 TDI 193K, Tuned with DPF and EGR Delete. 91 W124 300D Turbo replaced, Pressure W/G actuator installed. 210K 90 Dodge D250 5.9 Cummins/5 speed. 400K |
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