Biodiesel Fuel Prices

Biodiesel is made from renewable “feedstocks” such as animal fats and vegetable oils. They are put through a refining process to make them into usable fuels. A huge commodity for biodiesel is soybeans which are grown by almost half a million farmers in 29 states. Biodiesel blends operate in diesel engines from light yard machines to heavy construction machines similarly to petroleum diesel. B20, another name for biodiesel, works in any diesel engine with few or no modifications necessary to the engine or the fuel system. It also provides comparable horsepower, torque and mileage to diesel.

Biodiesel does not require special storage. In its pure or blended forms biodiesel can be stored wherever petroleum diesel is stored, except for concrete lined tanks. Storage tank materials include aluminum, steel, fluorinated polyethylene, fluorinated polypropylene and Teflon. Like any other fuel, biodiesel should be stored in a clean, dry, dark environment. With higher blend levels, biodiesel can deteriorate natural rubber or polyurethane foam materials. Biodiesel also has a higher flash point, handles very similarly to diesel and is safe for transporting.

Biodiesel costs depend on the market prices for vegetable oil. Generally, biodiesel blended at 20 percent level with petroleum diesel costs about 20 cents more per gallon than diesel alone. However, considering other advantages attributed to biodiesel, emission management systems with biodiesel are much less expensive than diesel overall. Booz-Allen & Hamilton, Inc, did a study. Their findings showed fleets using 20 percent biodiesel blend would experience lower costs than other alternative fuels. Reports by University of Georgia indicate biodiesel powered buses are competitive with other alternative fuel buses with biodiesel prices being as high as $3 per gallon.

The American Society of Testing and Materials is the premier standard setting organization in the United States. They have issued specification D 6751 for all biodiesel fuel bought and sold in the United States in March of 2002. This marked a major milestone for the biodiesel industry. With a full standard in place, the consumer is protected from poor products and services. It also reduces the cost of buying and selling biodiesel. Those who adopted the specification in 1999 were immediately able to see the results. Those that did not had to negotiate their own specification. The passing of D 6751 cuts down on the middle man and the riff raff in the biodiesel industry. This streamlining makes biodiesel fuel prices a viable option, comparable to diesel prices.