CAN BIODIESEL HELP US FIGHT GLOBAL WARMING?
Yes. When biodiesel displaces petroleum, it reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions such as carbon dioxide (CO2). Biodiesel has a closed carbon cycle, meaning the CO2 that is released into the atmosphere when biodiesel is burned is in turn absorbed or recycled by the plants that are growing, which are then processed into more cleaner fuel in the future. This is why biodiesel is a clean and renewable fuel. This is in contrast to the burning of fossil fuels, where 100 per cent of the CO2 adds to the concentration levels in the air. Because fossil fuels are used to produce biodiesel, the recycling of CO2 with biodiesel is not 100 per cent, but substituting biodiesel for petroleum diesel can reduce life-cycle carbon emissions (LFEs) by 78 per cent or more, depending on the feedstock used. B20 will reduce LFEs by 15.66 per cent on average.
