Biodiesel: To Switch or Not to Switch? A Greener Fuel Option for the SJSU Shuttle Bus System
Abstract
For the past several years the SJSU shuttle bus system has been the subject of anger from the residents living in the neighborhoods through which the shuttle buses travel several times daily. Individuals living in the Spartan-Keyes neighborhood, near the Spartan stadium, have been working with staff at the City of San Jose to reduce the amount of large truck and bus traffic in their neighborhood for several years.
The staff at the San Jose State University Police Department (UPD), the organization in charge of the campus shuttle bus system, is in a position to make a real difference in the lives of residents in this neighborhood. If the SJSU shuttle bus system switched from petroleum-based diesel fuel to biodiesel, a fuel based on vegetable oils or animal fats, SJSU’s contribution to the poor air quality of this neighborhood would be drastically reduced.
In fact UPD staff had begun to research biodiesel fuel, but decided to suspend their investigation after realizing that fueling time would be doubled due to the unavailability of a pre¬ prepared B20 (20% biodiesel/80% petroleum diesel) fuel mix. The additional fueling time necessary was unacceptable. This truncated investigation left many questions in the minds of UPD staff:
● How could the fueling time for biodiesel be shortened?
● Would Cummins honor the engine warranty once biodiesel was used?
● Would the use of biodiesel result in engine damage?
This report attempts to answer such questions, as well as to provide a general comparison of air pollution and therefore health impacts resulting from biodiesel and petroleum diesel fuel. It investigates the question of whether or not the San Jose State University (SJSU) shuttle bus system can achieve significant economic and environmental benefits by switching from conventional diesel fuel to biodiesel.
