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Delicious, rich in antioxidants, and downright inspiring, coffee may fuel more than your neurons. From Treehugger, the mighty coffee bean makes good biodiesel.
Researchers Mano Misra, Susanta Mohapatra and Narasimharao Kondamundi figured that since coffee grounds contain about as much oil by weight, 11-20%, as more traditional biodiesel feedstocks such as rapeseed, soybeans, or palm oil.
And given that more than 16 million pounds of coffee is produced each year, if the waste grounds could be given a second life as biodiesel feedstock, that could be a lot of biofuel: 340 million gallons to be exact. That’s the equivalent of roughly 8 million barrels of oil, for those rushing to their calculators.
Unlike dedicated biodiesel crops, this would employ the waste product, giving the spent beans a second life. Genius. And most important:
Yes, Coffee Biodiesel Smells Like Coffee
Imagine it. Instead of the noxious smell of petrol, our highways and biways could embrace our nostrils like a coffee house. Can world peace be far behind?... I might be getting a little ahead of myself. Could be something to do with the very large morning cuppa I just finished.
"Coffee, according to the women of Denmark, is to the body what the Word of the Lord is to the soul."
~ Isak Dinesen
~ Isak Dinesen
2 comments:
Rather than used dedicated crops, however, for years Brazil has been processing the "factory defects" of grown coffee beans into biodiesel.
While not entirely reuse, it's given additional purpose to what is otherwise considered refuse.
Thanks!
Good for Brazil!
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