Comments on: Pinoybuzz: UP Jeepney Operator goes for Bio-Diesel made from used cooking oil

By: paul farol

paul farol — Fri, 14 May 2010 23:54:58 +0000

the glycerin by-product will be used to make soap and other products. The goal is to get the communities to sell the by-product as well as the used cooking oil biodiesel.

By: RDL

RDL — Thu, 13 May 2010 12:05:13 +0000

I think this is good. Not just the use of biodiesel in jeepneys, but also the grassroots initiative involved. Go BIODIESEL!!!

I’m curious about what happens to the glycerin by-product. A lot of small biodiesel producers have this as a current problem.

By: Niamh Carter

Niamh Carter — Sat, 01 May 2010 16:07:59 +0000

i always use Biodiesel on my car to help the environment. Biodiesel is cleaner and is reneweable..*”

By: HusengBatute

HusengBatute — Sat, 13 Mar 2010 00:38:35 +0000

The effort itself of looking for alternative energy sources is highly commendable, but I suppose this still needs more research.

Crude oil itself was formed after millions of years from carbon-based fossils of living organisms, so there is an advantage in not having to wait for the earth to process fuel sources for such long periods of time.

There is a professor in UC-Davis whose engine runs on used cooking oil. You can tell he’s been around when it starts to smell like fries

By: Steven Adkins

Steven Adkins — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:00:45 +0000

i just cannot wait until the majority is not depended on oil to fuel there cars. It’s great that these innovative persons are using their ingenuity to find better fuel options because the list of benefits is never-ending. Thanks for the post!!

By: bp

bp — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 06:50:27 +0000

i don’t know how the science behind the idea works but it sure is interesting. i remember seeing a ripley’s believe it or not feature on a group that took a van on a trip across the united states. their van ran on fastfood cooking oil.

i think filipinos should do more exploring on alternative energy sources. this one is a good start i think. we just need to be more scientific about it. wouldn’t it be good if the philippines found a way to shift from the usual power sources. maybe invent a new technology.

i still think though that instead of finding new energy sources for jeepneys it would be better to do a complete re-design of this relic. the jeepney should give way to better means of transportation.

By: Moonlight Bomber

Moonlight Bomber — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 06:35:08 +0000

For so long am I (silently) supporting the option to use used cooking oil as fuel. If all vehicles use it, the Philippines will smell like fastfood. Way much better than putrid smoke.

By: Ray Rodriguez

Ray Rodriguez — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 06:41:06 +0000

I am aware of a group in the Binondo area who have a more environmentally friendly means of transportation than that Bio-Diesel jeepney. Theirs are Kalesas running not on Bio-Diesel but on Kabayo-Diesel. PEACE!

By: BenK

BenK — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 04:41:15 +0000

In general, I don’t think bio-diesel is a good environmental solution. It requires a lot of energy to produce, and where it is produced using biomass, significantly reduces the land and grain available for food production. The benefits of biofuel are canceled out by negative impacts elsewhere.

BUT I think the application here, particularly how it is being handled in this program, is a significant and acceptable exception with a positive net result. Since the Philippines does not have much heavy industry, most of the air pollution can be blamed on vehicles, and this biofuel is being applied to what are probably the worst-polluting ones. That’s sensible. The Philippines also imports all its fuel, so anything that reduces that strategic disadvantage is also a strong benefit. Since the source material being used is also a source of ground and water pollution, it is helping that problem as well, and not posing a risk to the country’s already-insufficient food production capacity.

A much better long-term solution is to develop effective and energy-efficient transportation systems to replace the jeepneys entirely. Perhaps this is a good start; if nothing else, it makes a dent in the much larger problem. Hopefully, the people behind this can maintain that perspective and keep working on it even after they achieve their immediate goals.