Anyone know why diesel is still a dollar more
Last edited by 240D 3.0T; Mar 2, 2009 at 12:02 AM.
http://www.calepa.ca.gov/Legislation/1997/sb315.htm
http://www.dieselearth.com/notebook/...s-illegal.html
http://online.wsj.com/article/S60823...tml?refresh=on
Your links are our of date. CA law has changed a little since 1997. You might want to refer to the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Apparently you also missed The Golden Fuels Systems eBay auction of their truck and it's polymerized engine? Also, 40CFR is in regards to fleets which contain passenger and light duty vehicles, not individuals. Taxation is completely a valid issue along with safety and emissions.
The Clean Air Act only has language for industrial abuses, not individual. And yet in all its wisdom, the E.P.A. allows unregulated burning of unregulated oils for furnace heating in small industry - so is pollution from passenger autos really a big issue? Not imho if you consider that ordering a single hamburger from a fast food joint invokes more pollution and aggregate toxicity than driving a Hummer for a year.
As for taxation, yes, the I.R.S. will and has fined individuals for fueling with non-taxed fuels. Same as they enforce laws against using red off-road, or "tractor" fuels in on-road vehicles. That many state offer tax rebates and credits for alt. fuelers is a subtlety apparently lost on you. Just 'cause Goatman is picking on you is no reason to get snarky. Trolls need only be ignored, not fed.
As for ASTM regulation, well, poorly handled ASTM diesel #2 can destroy your engine just as easily as unregulated neat biodiesel will dissolve all the seals and rubbers in your 29 year old taxi cab.
As for the price of diesel fuel, ULSD will never fall back in to the old price structures in relationship to gasoline grades. ULSD refining is a super-critical process and simply costs more to produce. This cost will always be reflected in the market prices, retail or wholesale. Gasoline blends in the U.S. now all contain Ethanol which not only gives you less BTU so you'll buy more to get the same distance, it's price is only remaining as "low" as it is because of the volume of sales and the subsidizing accorded the 1992 Energy Policy Act, From http://www1.eere.energy.gov/vehiclesandfuels/epact/:
"The Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct) was passed by Congress to reduce our nation's dependence on imported petroleum by requiring certain fleets to acquire alternative fuel vehicles, which are capable of operating on nonpetroleum fuels."
Just as WVO is not biodiesel, most WVO is not even vegetable oil and not all biodiesel is ASTM biodiesel. ASTM biodiesel also puts money in the pocket of the biolipid transesterification patent holder: Colgate. Furthermore, I have yet to hear of one single auto manufacturer approving concentrations of more than 20% ASTM biodiesel, or B20. Since you own a diesel and this thread is about diesel price structures, throw this in to the mix: synthetic diesel, often sold as "premium diesel" by Shell in Europe will eventually provide a true "alternative" to conventional seasonal blends of ULSD #2.
Emerging Diesel Fuel:
http://www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/fuel...l_what_is.html
"What is Fischer-Tropsch diesel?
Fischer-Tropsch (F-T) diesel is synthetic diesel fuel produced by converting gaseous hydrocarbons, such as natural gas and gasified coal or biomass, into liquid fuel.
Fischer-Tropsch Diesel as an Alternative Fuel
Fischer-Tropsch diesel can be substituted directly for conventional (petroleum-derived) diesel to fuel diesel-powered vehicles, without modification to the vehicle engine or fueling infrastructure.
To enhance energy independence in the face of apartheid-related embargoes, South Africa satisfied most of its diesel demand with natural gas- and coal-derived F-T diesel for decades and is still using the fuel in significant quantities. More recently, global concerns about energy supplies and costs and the environment have created interest in F-T fuels elsewhere. For example, Shell markets F-T diesel as a premium diesel blend in Europe and Thailand. In the United States, F-T diesel has been used in demonstration projects."
Personally, considering the coal reserves in this country, I think the smart money is on synthetic diesel for an interim liquid fuel until we acheive solar and hydrogen independance and international ecological accountability.
Same group of people gave this country our Department of Energy its 1992 Energy Policy Act (EPAct):
http://www1.eere.energy.gov/vehiclesandfuels/epact/
"The U.S. Department of Energy is currently reviewing petitions to decide on a rulemaking for Fischer-Tropsch diesel (FTD). The FTD petitions, as well as analyses, reports, notices, and other information, are available in DOE's Docket for Rulemaking on Fischer-Tropsch Diesel Fuels.
For more information on the Alternative Fuel Designation Authority, e-mail fuel_petitions@afdc.nrel.gov."
From the DOE's docket:
"Docket for Rulemaking on Fischer-Tropsch Diesel Fuels (EE-RM-02-200)
Three companies have petitioned DOE to have their fuels, which are all diesel fuels produced from natural gas, designated as alternative fuels under the Energy Policy Act (EPAct): PetroSA, Rentech, Inc., and Syntroleum Corp.
The above docket for rulemaking contains numerous intersting links to research .pdf's.
Best,
Furnace heating is self-regulating. If furnace makers build an inefficient and polluting burner they won't have any customers to sell to plus they would have plies of lawsuits from sick/dead customers.
Car owners don't really care about emissions because it all goes out the tailpipe where they never interact with it.
WVO fundamentally can't be standardized or regulated becasue it can be based off many different oils, is pre-contaminated with a huge variety of chemicals, can be altered from normal use (how long/heavily it was used and at what temperature) and is done predominantly under the radar.
Ethanol does not work in EFI engines for reducing emissions, the computer automatically injects more fuel to compensate for the lean burn. Carburetion is the only application its actually effective. Its also heavily subsidized becasue it costs more to produce than it sells for and it inflates the cost of food around the world. If an alternative/supplimentary fuel is to work sucessfully it can't be made from products that are a primary consumer item.
Solar has decades of development before it can become an automotive alternative. Its very expensive, it has a low surface area:current production ratio, its dependent on sun exposure and its brittle.
"Ecological accountability" is not possible. We can't police the world, the USA houses only 6% of the population and a lot of the world's sovereign countries do not agree with most of our policies. Until we invade and attempt to conquer them, as we have begun doing a few years ago, they are free to pollute as much as they choose.
Last edited by 240D 3.0T; Mar 2, 2009 at 08:55 AM.
I am sure your feelings lead you to believe that.
Scroll back upwards - you were the one who posted the out of date legislation URL from the State of California. Also, FWIW, you might want to review the history of States rights. CA has some interesting legislation which is quite contrary to Federal policy and law. It does, in fact, matter very much what the State legislature does. Considering your attitude towards taxation, you seem rather disenfranchised from the political process afforded you in this country. Give it a try. Much more rewarding than ad hoc ad hominems.
Not sure where the exhaust from your home heater goes, but most HVAC involves routing the emissions differently than the heated air you breathe. If you think car owners don't interact with their emissions, I can only guess that you are posting from an alternate universe. Ever visit L.A. at sunset?Not according to the United Nations Food And Agriculture Organization. Also, I am quite well aware of how bad it is to produce hybrid batteries. Litihium ore mining is not pretty. I think you missed my point: personal automotive emissions are nothing in the face of industry, especially transnational technocracy. Colgate wasn't inventing a better toothpaste when they came up with biolipid transesterification. As for policing the world, well... what's the saying, "where the military goes, the private sector follows."
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At least the other troll is posting diesel price info.
I agree with lkchris, ultimately, the economic analysis of these two commodities is a little useless.
Best,
Uncle Paka
The Best of Mercedes & AMG
$1.93 today for ULSD at the 'cheapest' station in town
$2.05 for RUG - same station
For what its worth - It has just been announced that the Valero refinery (one of the largest on the Gulf Coast) is now in the process of converting their equipment to produce ALL ULSD from now on. The article was not clear if ANY ULSD had been produced there in the past. The Valero refinery, when the mods are complete should be able to make 200,000 barrels per day ULSD! THATS why the price of diesel is now lower than gas - the supply is about to take a big jump.
Don't worry, we all know you're a useless troll nobody loves.



