Ducky Paredes

Malaya (03.16.07)

“Coco-biodiesel is superior to biodiesel from soybeans, rapeseed, jathropha, canola and other vegetable oils which all increase NOx emission which produce smog or ground-level ozone, a common air pollutant.”

Trains and Biodiesel

by Ducky Paredes

From 1985 to 2002, there were 758 accidents at railroad crossings of the Philippine National Railways (PNR). That is almost four a month for the last 17 years.
Existing usable railroad tracks are 474 kilometers long. The unused North Line, from Tarlac to San Jose, Nueva Ecija is 266 kilometers long.
In the still in-use South Line, there are over 400 road crossings and 134 stations. The accidents do not happen out in the sticks; instead, ninety percent of accidents are in Metro Manila and many of them happen to people who live right by the railroad tracks where dwellings can be only a hairsbreadth from being sideswiped by an onrushing locomotive.
Yet, these “informal dwellers” or, more correctly, squatters resist every effort to relocate them to safer ground.
As far back as 2001, the PNR General Manager Joey Ma. Sarasola II created the PNR Public Safety Office and gave the job to Chief Security and Public Safety Officer Gerry Gerona.
Gerona now conducts educational and public information campaigns on safety awareness among persons living by the railroad tracks and railroad crossings. Gerona also coordinates with officials of local government units who are just as concerned over the safety of their constituents. Among Gerona’s tough jobs is that of making sure that cleared areas are protected from new squatters and that of preventing pilferage and theft of materials that sometimes causes derailment of carriages.
Still pending is Senate Bill 2428, authored by Senate President Manuel Villar that would assure the unobstructed passageway of trains to ensure the safety of the riding public and those of person living near railroad tracks. Villar’s bill would also give to local government units that construct roads that cross railroad tracks the control and supervision (and the responsibility) of keeping those road crossings clear for passing trains. Thus, these LGUs would man the crossings with their own railroad crossing keepers as well as install crossing bars on these roads.
The passage of this Villar measure into law would be a big help for PNR General Manager Sarasola II to achieve his long-time goal of zero accidents.
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Two years ago, Flying V started the retail distribution of what it called the B1 Blend of Biodiesel (diesel with 1% coco-methyl ester. Flying V has sold 30 million liters since. According to users, it is cleaner fuel and gives them more mileage.
The Department of Energy and the Department of Trade and Industry have set a Philippine National Standard (PNS) for coco-biodiesel, This is the only biodiesel anywhere in the world that lowers nitrogen oxides (NOx) in the exhaust that contribute to the harmful greenhouse gases that cause climate change.
It also reduces CO2 at the rate of three kilos for every liter of biodiesel. PNS-compliant biodiesel is also scientifically proven to lower diesel emissions by 30 to 60%. It is proven to be beneficial to diesel engines and is accredited by the Worldwide Fuel Charter for use up to a 5% blend (B%) in diesel for all makes of cars.
The U.S. target is 20% biodiesel use by 2010, Most countries us a 2% blend. The PNS for coco-biodiesel is consistent with biodiesel standards in the U.S. and Europe which is why the Philippines have become and exporter of coco-biodiesel to first-world markets such as the EU and Japan.
With the Biofuels Act of 2006, coco-biodiesel will finally be available to all. This will mean a cost savings of at least P3.23 per liter based on the mileage improvement that ranges from a low of 10% to as much as 25%. The cleansing and declogging effect of coco-biodiesel on engines will also result in lower maintenance and repair costs.
Coco-biodiesel is superior to biodiesel from soybeans, rapeseed, jathropha, canola and other vegetable oils which all increase NOx emission which produce smog or ground-level ozone, a common air pollutant. Coco-biodiesel decreases the nitrogen emissions coming from the diesel fuel.
Coco-biodiesel is also not reactive to oxidation, not prone to bacterial growth, rancidity, corrosion, polymerization and gumming unlike biodiesels made from other vegetable oils.
The Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) has started field-testing 100% coco-methyl ester CME) as diesel engine fuel. According to the PCA, some industry fleets are actually using pure CME on their trucks.
According to the Asian Institute of Petroleum Studies, Inc. (AIPSI), the use of coco-biodiesel should be particularly beneficial in the Philippines because we use a lot of old diesel engines in this country.
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What the use of CME in biodiesel will mean that some P4 billion per year, will go to buying coconut oil, based on 70 million liters of CME to be sourced from the coconut. This is an entirely new market or coconut farmers.
The country save P23.3 billion representing P2.3 billion of imported fuel that we need not purchase because of the mandated one percent blend of biodiesel and P21 billion from the theoretical reduction in fuel consumption due to expected mileage improvement.
This will also channel new investments in coconut farms as well as improve our export earnings from the sale to other countries of coco-methyl ester as well as coco-biodiesel.

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“The use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today but such oils may become in course of time as important as petroleum and the coal tar products of the present time.” — Rudolf Diesel, the inventor of the Diesel Engine.

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Readers who missed a column can access www.duckyparedes.com,/blogs. This is updated daily. Your reactions are welcome at duckyparedes@yahoo.com

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hvp (03.15.07)

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