[Exerpted from this morning's edition of the San Francisco Chronicle...conversion rationale and trip documentation at http://www.greasecar.com/Turbo_Meat.html ] GREASE GUZZLER Two Massachusetts men journey west in van that runs on fat and cooking oil Glen Martin, Chronicle Staff Writer Wednesday, August 9, 2000 Perhaps it's not surprising that a VW van piloted by two young men would reek of maple bars, hamburgers, fried chicken and bacon after a cross- country tour -- road food, after all, is a big part of the road trip experience. But Justin Carven and his lifelong friend, Skip Wrightson, aren't the only ones scarfing the junk food on a trip from New England to California and back. Their Volkswagen van is addicted as well. Carven, 23, and Wrightson, 22, left their native state of Massachusetts on July 13, determine to drive across the nation and back on funky old cooking oil and fat. Instead of filling up at Shell stations along the interstate, they prowled towns and cities for mom- and-pop restaurants, fueling their rig with the dregs of deep fat fryers. They blew into San Francisco a couple of days ago, and plan to spend today in Oakland before lighting out for Los Angeles. The 1982 blue VW Westfalia camper the two men are driving is powered by a unique diesel engine Carven designed and built, one that runs on virtually any kind of oleaginous material poured into its tank. The van has been getting about 25 to 27 miles per gallon of grease, said Wrightson. Carven eventually hopes to sell kits based on his invention so anyone with a little mechanical ability can convert a diesel engine to run on waste grease. Carven came up with his engine at Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass., where he recently received a degree in appropriate technology development. The project earned a $14,000 grant from the National Collegiate Innovators and Inventors Alliance. Fat-burning diesels have been around a while, but most require chemical treatment of the grease to reduce viscosity and to make it free- flowing. Carven has taken another approach, using a heating system to keep the fuel running smoothly. [...] Read the complete story, including pictures, at http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/200 0/08/09/MN85083.DTL
_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ You can't depend on your judgement when your imagination is out of focus. -- Mark Twain. _/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/_/ OLTECO Ari Ollikainen P.O. BOX 3688 Networking Architecture and Technology Stanford, CA Ari@OLTECO.com 94309-3688 415.517.3519 |
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