Kids Build 50 mpg / 4 sec 0-60 Soybean-Fueled Car

[280plus]

Yes, but don't you get an overwhelming deisre for moo goo gai pan while driving?

[Stand_watie]

Now all we've got to worry about is the estrogenising effects of soybean exhaust.

Be careful boys. The mechanic of the future may have an awesome curvy figure from behind. But I bet he is mean with a monkey wrench.

I feel emasculated just looking at the picture. Looks like rocky mountain oysters at the moment of harvest.

[Stand_watie]

I want one.

You're disgusting.

Oh. You meant one of the cars. Never mind.

[Antibubba]

erik,

   Actually, you don't even need to convert the oil into biodiesel-diesel engines will burn straight veggie oil.  The problem is making it flow easily- a preheater is usually involved.
--------
   It is true that bidiesel will not be able to fully replace petro, but eventually oil will be too valuable to burn, instead going into chemicals, plastics, and soforth.  There will be a need to shift over to other fuels.  BDiesel, ethanol, electric, hydrogen perhaps, maybe even steam again.  The important thing is to not try to make a switchover as the stuff is drying out, but beforehand.  And as a preparedness-type, the simplicity of making biodiesel and ethanol appeals to me

[mfree]

Forget ethanol, butanol is where it's at. Different organism, different process, results in a better alcohol and some other useful chemicals too (acetone, a little ethanol). Doesn't require the sugar load that traditional yeast/ethanol does, it works with cellulose.

IIRC butanol is 97/100 the caloric value of gasoline, only drawback is that it's got a much higher vapor temperature, you'd need direct injection or intake heaters for cold weather.

[charby]

IIRC butanol is 97/100 the caloric value of gasoline, only drawback is that it's got a much higher vapor temperature, you'd need direct injection or intake heaters for cold weather.

So just burn it in a diesel engine?

[publius]

To power every car in the US, how much land would need to be used to grow enough soybeans to make enough fuel?

How much of the land, now used for produce for consumption, as well as grazing grounds, would be needed to grow enough food for human consumption and enough soybeans for fuel?

You don't have to use soybeans, and we actually need less and less land to feed more and more people as farming advances.