Considering what they’re putting into some biodiesel blends these days — French fry grease, chicken fat, sunflower — it might make more sense to buy the fuel for your kitchen rather than your Kenworth.

Just don’t tell that to the Feds or the B.C. government, though. They believe that biodiesel is a no-brainer for heavy truck fuel tanks — so much so, that they’re going to ensure as many truckers as possible are filling up with the stuff in the next three years, regardless of significant outstanding operational and market-based concerns.

Urged on by farmers and the subsidized renewable-fuels industry, Ottawa is prescribing a national on-road biodiesel mandate of B2 (two-percent biofuel) at some point between 2010 and 2012. 

In case you don’t read this magazine often enough, or you’ve been living in a far off country whose agriculture lobbyists have no idea what a diesel engine and a coconut could have in common, biodiesel is a renewable fuel made mostly from rapeseed, soybean, and other natural vegetable oils or animal fats. It can be blended at any grade (from B2 to pure B100) and combusts in any diesel vehicle.

In Canada’s most leftward province, the government plans to take things further, within an even narrower timeframe. The B.C. government is going full speed ahead with a province-wide B5 renewable fuel standard (RFS) for on- and off-road diesel, including home heating oil.

One common misconception regarding the national and B.C. proposals is that fuel retailers will be required to sell B2 and B5 directly at the pump. Not exactly. While it’s possible that is indeed what you’ll get, the inconvenient truth is that, practically speaking, truckers could be pumping zero biodiesel content (if they’re lucky), or worse, blends as high as B10, B15 or higher, which could affect engine efficiency and strict warranty rules.

Here’s why:

As written, the proposal requires petroleum producers to comply with a renewable fuel “pool average,” meaning they must send to market an annual average of B2 (or B5 in B.C.). The problem, as one fuel policy insider explains, is the actual blend at the pump is left free to vary between the stated value based on customer demand. This, of course, is of particular concern in B.C. where the mandated average blend is even higher.

If the bio mandate passes as written,
you may get the right bio blend, none, or way too much.

“What you’re going to have is some commercial customers that have market power and are in a position to say ‘I only want B3’ or, more likely, ‘I don’t want any B at all,’” explains the B.C. Trucking Association’s (BCTA) Paul Landry, who’s been fighting against this plan as hard as anyone in Canada.

“When they do that, they affect the average in the pool that has to be delivered across the entire province. So, a bunch of big customers … will demand a lower B level and other customers will get a higher proportion, by definition, depending on where they are and what time of the year it is.”

Theoretically — and that’s all anyone can go on at this point — things get thornier, not to mention more expensive, in the winter time.

Because of the notorious cold flow and gelling troubles with higher biodiesel blends in sub-zero climates (it’s worse in certain feedstocks than others), it’s highly unlikely fuel suppliers will be shipping B5 or higher to Prince George in February.

So, as Landry says, “they’ll obey the law as best they can by providing a B blend somewhere else in the system that’s higher.” It’s a good bet that “somewhere else,” then, will likely be populated southern regions of the province with milder temperatures — although not necessarily mild enough for high biodiesel usage.

Arguing for carriers at the national level for the Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) is senior VP, Stephen Laskowski. He points out that truckers are the largest consumers of diesel fuel in the country, but individually they have very little market leverage.

Therefore, they’re the ones who will bear much of the costs since the most obvious solution for fuel suppliers to closing the B-gap is to dump the higher blends onto the retail on-road market. And, as the reg is currently written, it’s perfectly legal.

Furthermore, while the majority of biodiesel suppliers abide by industry-based ASTM International D6751 specifications there’s no real government enforcement. As a recent U.S. Department of Energy study found, small and medium producers have “significant failure rates,” when it comes to following proper blending practices.

“The issue,” says Laskowski, “is that the [biodiesel] industry is self governed.”

Although it’s been proposed by trucking lobbyists and petroleum suppliers, the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association isn’t likely to go for a revision to the RFS which would establish a universal B2 rate rather than a national pool average. After all, its members are in the business of making as much biodiesel as they can, not less.

In response to trucking carriers’ concerns, the CRFA insists that it’s up to the petroleum industry to create the infrastructure for integrating biodiesel into diesel, regardless of the fact petroleum companies echo many of trucking’s concerns.

Meanwhile, neither B.C. nor Ottawa appear willing to budge from the current RFS proposal — at least not now. (Although, as we were posting this feature online, we heard news that BCTA had made some progress in negotiations with the province, so stay tuned).

STILL BIO-DEBATABLE :

Both Landry and Laskowski stress their groups aren’t against biodiesel per se. They point out that they supported the recently concluded Alberta Renewable Diesel Demonstration (ARDD), which was established to test the cold-weather operability of biodiesel. Overall, the project yielded positive results, concluding that B2 can be used in five-year-old heavy-duty trucks during the winter and B5 is fine for the rest of the year.

Food vs Fuel: There’s lots of ink spilled on the theory that
Biodiesel drives up food prices and creates emissions by
diverting crop land away from food production.

But CTA and the Canadian Petroleum Products Institute make it clear that the program was conducted in a very controlled environment and transitioning from this small-scale demonstration to full, real-world commercial implementation on a national basis still presents significant challenges.

“Everything went as it was supposed to, with heated tanks, guaranteed fuel supply and all the rest of it,” says Laskowski. “Well, in reality, we know that the infrastructure just isn’t out there.”

Also, the demonstration was conducted with newer engines (2002-2007), which are approved by engine makers to handle B5 or less.

What remains unknown, though, is how biodiesel affects new 2010 engines, particularly SCR technology requiring urea-based diesel exhaust fluid. 

Not all engine makers responded to requests for information on how biodiesel is being tested in the upcoming engines. Mack’s David McKenna did say, however, that his company is doing preliminary testing with B20 and SCR. Although no major issues have been observed (other than elevated cylinder combustion temperatures and small NOx increases, depending on the feedstock) it’s still too early to say which B blend will be approved for 2010 engines, if at all.

A far more significant concern, however, is how the RFS impacts pre-2002 engines, which still make up close to 70 percent of the national truck fleet. If blends exceed B2 or B5 as expected, these are the engines far more likely to experience the typical operability problems in chilly climates — gelling and frosting (or biodiesicles, if one prefers); fuel foaming, water separation which leads to microbial growth; and the most common challenge, fuel filter plugging and related injector issues. 

Smart operators want to read the fine print on the engine warranty. While most OEMs "allow" biodiesel (only up to B5 usually), some warranties don’t "extend" to other parts of the fuel system like injectors, the fuel pump or gaskets. And you don’t want to be the guy who finds that out after you unknowingly fill up with B15.

Additive cocktails is the common remedy advanced by the B industry, but loads of anecdotal evidence suggests that these problems still persist in older trucks running in colder regions. Besides, one of the few truly comprehensive studies on biodiesel, conducted by the California Air Resources Board (not exactly card-carrying members of the global-warming-denying crowd) points out, among other concerns, that more testing is necessary on how additives themselves can potentially alter the characteristics of biodiesel, “increasing its environmental and health risks.”

So, just what is the big hurry, then?

Before any legislation is passed, CTA wants more tests that “simulate real-world market sourcing” and “fleets from every corner of Canada must be allowed to select their own suppliers and equipment and manage the process as they normally would.”

Basically, “what we want is assurances,” says Laskowski. “We want the same consumer protection as everyone else in the supply chain. If the [government] is hell-bent on putting forward a renewable fuel mandate, then these issues must be dealt with first.”

If the decisions remain in the hands of the politicians and bureaucrats, they’re going to learn the hard way that when it comes to biodiesel, you can’t fuel all the people all the time. And it’s truckers who are going to pay.