adventure using biodiesel from chocolate

[haven]

A pair of sustainable-lifestyle activists drove a Land Cruiser and a flatbed truck from London to Timbuktu, Mali, powered by biodiesel. The fuel was made by converting misshapen chocolate pieces discarded by a candy manufacturing plant into diesel!

The pair started by converting 4000 kg (about 8800 lbs) of candy into 2000 liters (about 525 US gallons) of fuel. The cocoa butter in the candy is the source of the oil. The flatbed truck carried the fuel and the Land Cruiser most of the way. The final couple of hundred miles were driven using the Land Cruiser alone. The 4500 mile journey took about 3 weeks to complete.

The original reason to drive to Mali was to deliver the parts to assemble a small biodiesel processing plant. A charity in Mali is researching how to make fuel from the seeds of the jatropha plant, a small tree that grows on marginal land in semi-arid regions.

Four members of a French family were killed during a robbery in rural Mauritania a few weeks after the chocolate biodiesel team passed through the area. The attack was the reason the Dakar Rally was canceled.

http://www.biotruck.co.uk/

Next, the pair are planning a trip across Asia in a camper powered by biodiesel and solar power.

Chip Haven

 

[whatcharterboat]

Hi Leon. Have never seen an FG on biodiesel or used veggie oil (UVO) here in OZ but this is a good story anyway.

As you may or my not know, I just completed my Dip. in Renewable Energy Technology in 07 and am about to start my Advanced Dip in a couple of weeks with a view to be teaching this subject in schools or tech colleges soon after. Anyway, 2 of our lecturers (Christine and Alex who met teaching at college and are now actually a married couple) in 07 did an East/ West return crossing of Oz (Noosa to Broome) running only on UVO they sourced from country pubs and roadhouses along the way. They set up a mobile filtering system and could carry as much in reserve as was necessary.

Alex is an absolute genius with electronics and very passionate about renewable energy and awareness of weaning off coal, nuclear and oil. Hence they stopped at every opportunity in outback schools and aboriginal reserves to give brief lectures to the kids and teachers. Very noble stuff.

Here is the link of their photo album of the trip.
http://picasaweb.google.com/deserttrek/DESERTTREKWEB?authkey=jhTPuVa3AF0#

The camper trailer was built entirely from recycled materials as was the UVO heating system for the Nissan Patrol. They travelled 11000 kilometers and only used $100 of diesel. Diesel can be around $8 a US gallon in the outback so it was just as well. This is a good story to read anyway , especially if anyone here has read Doug Hackney's recent post on US oil dependency. A real wake up call.

John

 

[2cv wayne]

Good call starting this thread, Haven. We met this chap at a seminar on expedition planning by the Royal Geographical Soc (London Nov 2008). His trip was thoroughly inspirational and really made you realise that you did not have to have all the answers before you enter into doing a trip like that...even if it has a majorly unusual motive! Things evolve and success comes from your conviction.

I will forward this thread to him (all speakers in the Explore weekend kindly shared their email contacts in the name of encouraging others in their own expeditions,) in the hope that he has a look and can answer any questions if anyone is curious.

 

[Ron B]

I think that study was comparing a prius to an h3 if I remember correctly. I always found the hummer-hate thing odd, especially toward the h1 when there were only 11,800 sold in 14 years and it gets the same mpg as any other diesel truck in it's class.