The idea of using vegetable oil as an alternate fuel source is as old as the diesel engine itself. Until recently, use of petroleum distillate to power diesel engines has been more economical than biodiesel. Decreasing petroleum supplies and increasing demand for fuel has stimulated renewed interest in biodiesel and commercial production of the product began in the United States in the late 1990’s.
Biodiesel is a safe, renewable fuel whose impact on the environment is positive. Unlike the production facilities associated with petroleum-based diesel, the impact of biodiesel facilities on local community and environment they depend on is minimal. Construction and operation of a biodiesel plant has also been shown to confer significant micro-and macro-economic benefits to both commercial and rural sectors.
Increasing commercial manufacture of biodiesel will have a positive impact on macro-economics. In 2006, it was estimated that construction of biodiesel plants and the ongoing operation of these plants would see more than 39,000 permanent jobs created in local communities by 2015. In addition, it was found that production of biodiesel could reduce the United States’ dependence on foreign crude oil imports by 242 million barrels by 2015. This decrease would mean that approximately $13.6 billion dollars would remain in the US economy. It is expected that the biodiesel industry will contribute $627 million into American householders’ pockets over the next decade.
There are also opportunities for tax revenue associated with the commercial production of biodiesel. Industry expansion will generate approximately $8.3 billion dollars of increased tax revenue for the Federal Government and $650 million dollars for state and locate Governments over the next decade.
The micro-economic benefits of increased commercial biodiesel manufacture are also important. There is often good opportunity to manufacture biodiesel in certain types of existing industrial plants, for example at grain-handling facilities or feed mills. These plants may have the necessary space and equipment for transporting feedstock and therefore, the cost of operating the biodiesel component of the plant is reduced. Keeping overheads low increases the profitability of the produced biodiesel.
Whilst the price of agricultural commodities is at an all time low, the price of petroleum is soaring. Increasing biodiesel production will improve the value of feedstock crops. The United State Department of Agriculture has indicated that if demand for soy-based biodiesel increased at an annual average of 200 million gallons, that crop cash would be boosted by $5.2 billion dollars by 2010. This would means that the average net farm income would increase by $300 million per year and that the price per soybean bushel would increase by 17 cents. This represents significant growth for local agriculturalists.
In addition to being a cleaner, more environmentally friendly fuel source, there are major economic benefits for increasing commercial biodiesel production. For rural America in particular, the advantages of community biodiesel plants are significant.
There may be a Biodiesel Plant on your community. Get familiar with Biodiesel today with free information provided. Joseph Then, the author of the article will help you understand more about Biodiesel Fuel.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Joseph_Then
Friday, July 13, 2007
Who Came Up With The Solar Panel
The solar panel has come a long way, but what about its origins. Specifically, who came up with the idea of the solar panel?
The name photovoltaic solar panel is derived from the Greek word phos meaning light and the name Volta, after the Italian physicist who developed the concept of voltage. Combined, this yields photovoltaic – of light and electricity.
The credit for inventing the photovoltaic solar cells is generally given to Alexandre-Edmund Becquerel, a French physicist. However, equal credit must be given to Charles Fritts, Russell Ohl, and scientists at Bell laboratories.
Becquerel first noticed the photovoltaic effect in 1839; light energy from the sun can be converted into electrical energy. However, the first solar cell was not built for another 44 years. Charles Fritts, an American, coated the semiconductor selenium with a thin layer of gold. Unfortunately the resulting device, while it did convert light energy into electric energy, had only about a 1% efficiency rate. Combined with the high expense of creating this piece of equipment, the invention was not practical or cost-effective in generating solar energy. What it did do, however, was whet the appetite of future scientists.
Russell Ohl was a noted researcher in semiconductors. He specialized in the study of the properties of crystals. He discovered the PN junction, which showed how the impurities in crystals impacted the flow of electricity. From this work, he was able to determine that super-purifying geranium was the key to making reusable semiconductor material for diodes. It was his work with diodes that led to his creation of the silicon solar cell in 1946. It was considered an “accident” and occurred while he was working at Bell labs on his semiconductors. By infusing silicon with certain impurities, the silicon becomes sensitive to light. Ohl’s work was considered advanced and only understood by a few of his colleagues.
Ohl’s work led to the production of the modern solar cells. These first photovoltaic cells had a sunlight to energy conversion rate around 6%. This generated interest in geostationary communications satellite because the photovoltaic cells provided the first viable renewable energy source.
Government funding was then thrown behind the development and improvement of solar panels in order to further the use of communication and spy satellites. Bell labs was source of much of the early innovation related to solar panel development.
From the work of a few extremely advanced scientists, the world now has over 200 manufacturers of solar panels. Solar energy is considered the most promising technology for our future needs of renewable and sustainable energy.
Rick Chapo is with SolarCompanies.com - learn more about solar panels.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Richard_Chapo
The name photovoltaic solar panel is derived from the Greek word phos meaning light and the name Volta, after the Italian physicist who developed the concept of voltage. Combined, this yields photovoltaic – of light and electricity.
The credit for inventing the photovoltaic solar cells is generally given to Alexandre-Edmund Becquerel, a French physicist. However, equal credit must be given to Charles Fritts, Russell Ohl, and scientists at Bell laboratories.
Becquerel first noticed the photovoltaic effect in 1839; light energy from the sun can be converted into electrical energy. However, the first solar cell was not built for another 44 years. Charles Fritts, an American, coated the semiconductor selenium with a thin layer of gold. Unfortunately the resulting device, while it did convert light energy into electric energy, had only about a 1% efficiency rate. Combined with the high expense of creating this piece of equipment, the invention was not practical or cost-effective in generating solar energy. What it did do, however, was whet the appetite of future scientists.
Russell Ohl was a noted researcher in semiconductors. He specialized in the study of the properties of crystals. He discovered the PN junction, which showed how the impurities in crystals impacted the flow of electricity. From this work, he was able to determine that super-purifying geranium was the key to making reusable semiconductor material for diodes. It was his work with diodes that led to his creation of the silicon solar cell in 1946. It was considered an “accident” and occurred while he was working at Bell labs on his semiconductors. By infusing silicon with certain impurities, the silicon becomes sensitive to light. Ohl’s work was considered advanced and only understood by a few of his colleagues.
Ohl’s work led to the production of the modern solar cells. These first photovoltaic cells had a sunlight to energy conversion rate around 6%. This generated interest in geostationary communications satellite because the photovoltaic cells provided the first viable renewable energy source.
Government funding was then thrown behind the development and improvement of solar panels in order to further the use of communication and spy satellites. Bell labs was source of much of the early innovation related to solar panel development.
From the work of a few extremely advanced scientists, the world now has over 200 manufacturers of solar panels. Solar energy is considered the most promising technology for our future needs of renewable and sustainable energy.
Rick Chapo is with SolarCompanies.com - learn more about solar panels.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Richard_Chapo
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