Characteristics of algae biodiesel that differ from petro diesel:

1. Algae biodiesel has virtually no sulfur content.
2. Biodiesel has superior lubricating properties, reducing fuel system wear, and increases the life of fuel injection equipment.
3. Algae biodiesel has more aggressive solvent properties than petro diesel and will dissolve leftover varnish residue.  Fuel filters should be changed shortly after introducing biodiesel into systems formerly running on petrodiesel to avoid clogging.
4. Biodiesel has about 5-8 percent less energy density than petrodiesel, but with its higher combustion efficiency and better lubricity to partially compensate, its overall fuel efficiency decrease is only about 2 percent.
5. The cloud point, or temperature at which pure (B100) biodiesel starts to gel, is about   32 ⁰F. A blend of B20 (20% biodiesel, 80% petrodiesel) generally does not gel in cold weather. Various additives will lower the gel point of B100.
6. Biodiesel's flash point (lowest temperature at which it can vaporize to form an ignitable mixture in air) is 266⁰F, significantly higher than petrodiesel's 147⁰F, or gasoline's 52⁰F.
7. Biodiesel reduces particulate matter by about 47 percent as compared to petroleum diesel. Biodiesel has less dangerous particulate matter because it reduces the solid carbon fraction on the particulate matter while increasing the amount of oxygen.

Advantages of biodiesel produced from algae:

1. Higher yield and hence      � hopefully � lower cost
2. The most significant      benefit is however in the yield      of algal oil, and hence biodiesel.      According to some estimates, the yield (per Acre      say) of oil from algae is      over 200 times the yield      from the best-performing plant/vegetable oils. While soybean typically      produces less than 50 gallon of oil per acre and rapeseed generates less      than 130 gallon per acre, algae can yield up to 10,000 gallons per acre.
3. Algae      can grow practically in every place where there is enough sunshine
4. The biodiesel      production from algae also has the beneficial by-product of reducing      carbon and NOx Emissions from power plants, if the algae are grown using exhausts from the power plants.
5. Algae      produce a lot of polyunsaturates, which may present a stability problem      since higher levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids tend to decrease the      stability of biodiesel.      But polyunsaturates also have much lower melting points than      monounsaturates or saturates, thus algal biodiesel should have much better      cold weather properties than many other bio-feedstock. Since one of the      disadvantages of biodiesel      is their relatively poor performance in cold temperatures, it appears that      algal biodiesel might score well on this point.

Other Related Sections

• Blue   Green Algae
• Red Algae
• Green Algae
• Marine Algae
• String Algae
• Pond Algae
• Pond   Algae Control
• Algae Control