Run my Car on Chip Fat?

Bio-power is a flourishing new venture that promotes real alternatives to the use of fossil fuels. The concept was originally set up by John Nicholson in North Wales, as a result of being stuck without any fuel at the time of the blockades nearly 4 years ago.

Bio-power

‘My wife is a nurse and she had to get to theatre early the next morning. The hospital in Bangor was twelve miles away and there were no busses that early. So I set to and made up my own form of diesel substitute by testing all kinds of oil I had in the house, including some vegetable oil. To my amazement the car went very well on this form of fuel, and I have been improving the recipe ever since’.

Unable to get any help to set up a production plant to promote and manufacture this new form of renewable non-fossil fuel in North Wales, John Nicholson formed a remarkable new venture to help others to do the very same thing anywhere else in the world.

‘We soon found that other enterprise agencies provided plenty of support to help people set up making Bio-power fuels. From a Global perspective it does not make any difference where people make a change from the use of fossil fuels to renewable fuels. It all helps reduce the effects of Global Warming’.

Bio-power operates as a Trade Association and a franchise. Bio-power (UK) Ltd, the hub of the Bio-power network is a not-for-profit company that is owned by its members. It cannot be taken over or sold. Bio-power runs a full program of seminars and courses to help people learn about the various ways in which real alternatives to fossil fuels can be made, very often from materials that are otherwise a waste disposal problem.

In less than two years Bio-power has grown to over 600 members, and 200 people have attended courses and are at various stages in setting up to make bio-fuels to meet local need. They received the Euro-Solar award at Olympia last October ‘for their outstanding contribution to the development of renewable energy in the UK’. John Nicholson has now travelled the world giving talks about the unique technology that has been developed to create efficient renewable fuels from waste materials. There are over 20 commercial scale projects being developed overseas, the largest of which is in China.

John Nicholson with his Euro Solar Award

Anyone can use the Bio-power technique. It is simple enough that you can make you own diesel with simple equipment at home without the need for any dangerous chemicals or chemical reactions.

‘The conventional way to make what is called “bio-diesel” involves the use of Caustic Soda and methanol to shatter the lipid fat molecule to create a free ester and also a waste by-product called ‘Glycerol’. This is a very waste full and inefficient process. We call it a subtractive method because you get a smaller volume of fuel from the fat stock used. The Bio-power technique is an additive process in which we leave the lipid fat molecule in tact and simply add other solvents and organic materials that ensure optimal burn efficiency. Ours is therefore an additive process because we get more fuel that the original fat stock used’.

For more information about Bio-power go to http://www.bio-power.co.uk/

Or contact John Nicholson, Bio-power (UK) Ltd. Tanrallt, Rhostryfan, Caernarfon, Gwynedd, LL54 7NT 01286 830312

grownupgreen - 04/06/04

---