Fuel made from farm crops has been around for years, but a
University of Georgia agricultural engineer has found a new use
for alternative-fuel crops.

John Goodrum says biodiesel is a great industrial-strength
cleanser.

For 20 years the researcher with the UGA College of
Agricultural
and Environmental Sciences has studied biodiesel, an
environmentally
friendly alternative fuel derived from crops like peanuts, corn,
soybeans and canola.

Looking for ways to open up the market for the crop-based
fuel,
he recently began focusing his research on new uses for
biodiesel.

Less Toxic and Environmentally
Friendly

"Many industrial-strength cleaners are chlorinated and
contain chemicals linked to cancer," Goodrum said. "The
solvents used to remove grease from cars and the cleansers used
by commercial laundries are very toxic to humans."

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Occupational
Safety
and Health Administration have begun restricting the use of such
cleansers, he said.

In his Athens, Ga., lab, Goodrum found that biodiesel works
great as an alternative to these harsh cleansers and is much less
toxic.

"A number of compounds in biodiesel can do these cleaning
jobs and are much more benign," he said. "Using
agricultural
products as cleansers isn’t a totally new concept. After all,
pine cleansers are pine-sap-based."

Goodrum said a new soybean-based household cleansing product
is already being marketed in the Midwest.

"It’s been well received because it’s natural, benign
and much safer to use around children," Goodrum said.
"Many
cleansers have toxic vapors and are a touch carcinogenic. You
wouldn’t want to have them around curious young
children."

Goodrum is also searching for new uses for many plant oils.
"For instance," he said, "five different kinds
of oils could be separated from crude peanut oul and made into
cleansers with different uses."

A Totally New Oil

One of Goodrum’s students, Dan Geller, has uncovered a totally
new plant oil.

"It comes from the cuphae plant, a weed native to
Georgia,"
said Goodrum. "This oil is not yet well characterized.
Unlike
other oils, it sloshes in the freezer. It just doesn’t
freeze."

Goodrum and Geller are studying ways this new oil can be
used.

Overall, Goodrum’s work is dedicated to agriculture in Georgia
and across the nation.

"My work has focused on searching for ways to add value
to Georgia’s crops," he said. "Through chemical
engineering,
we can convert crops into valuable products, like biodiesel, that
aren’t toxic to humans or harmful to the environment."

Not Giving Up On
Biodiesel

Although his new research focuses on plant-oil-based
cleansers,
Goodrum hasn’t given up on biodiesel as a fuel.

"Because biodiesel burns cleaner, buses fueled with it
don’t create black clouds of smoke," he said. "More
and more cities are choosing to use biodiesel in their bus lines
for this reason. But the price is still higher than for
traditional
fuels."

Goodrum says biodiesel is the perfect fuel for confined spaces
like coal mines and warehouses.

"If the air is cleaner, the workers aren’t coughing and
choking all day. It’s a healthier work environment," he
said.
"Biodiesel is also being used on pleasure ships. This way
the passengers aren’t breathing diesel vapors."

With biodiesel, accidental oil spills don’t become major
emergencies,
either. If any residue enters the water, microbes eat it up,
Goodrum
said, since the fuel is plant-based.