What many thought might be a fad has turned into a growing industry

You are driving in the big city for a weekend vacation with the family. You're penned in the rush hour traffic behind a public city bus. Just when you think you should roll up the windows to avoid inhaling the smog, your appetite jumps into high gear. Is that the smell of French Fries?

This scenario is actually becoming a reality around the country. What many thought might be a fad has turned into a growing industry. The number of vehicles running on biodiesel fuel continues to grow, and it has positively affected our Ace Roto-Mold tank sales.

Ace Roto-Mold tanks are not recommended for long-term storage of fuel, including biodiesel. However, our cone-bottom tanks have become very popular for use in the production process of biodiesel.

We sell to many customers who are combining our tanks and stands with pumps, hoses, etc. to sell whole home biodiesel systems (see photo). Our cone-bottom tanks work well for the settling and separation portion of the “recipe”. During the cooling process, the glycerine sinks to the bottom, while the methyl ester (biodiesel) stays at the top.

We sold over 10,000 inductor and cone-bottom tanks in 2005, which is 108% higher than just two years prior. We are on pace to break that record again in 2006. Our 15 and 60-gallon inductor tanks have been the most popular sizes for home biodiesel use, although more commercial production facilities are starting to use larger tanks.

With the high price and dependence on foreign sources of oil-based diesel, the industry continues to push biodiesel production. Branching ahead of home systems, several large facilities the size of ethanol plants are now going up to meet biodiesel demand. Den Hartog Industries will do its part to meet demand!

WHAT IS BIODIESEL? 

Biodiesel is the name of a clean burning alternative fuel, produced from domestic, renewable resources. Biodiesel is a diesel fuel substitute produced from renewable sources such as canola, soy and rapeseed.

HOW IS BIODIESEL MADE?

Many producers of biodiesel run around to local restaurants to collect their old cooking oil in order to recycle it. Biodiesel is typically produced through the reaction of a vegetable oil or animal fat with methanol or ethanol in the presence of a catalyst to yield glycerin and biodiesel (chemically called methyl or ethyl esters).

WHY BIODIESEL?

Here are some reasons industry leaders claim biodiesel is a compelling replacement for fossil fuels:

•  It reduces net carbon dioxide emission by 60-100% (can be greenhouse gas neutral).

•  The fuel is non-toxic (similar toxicity to table salt).

•  It degrades rapidly if spilt into waterways (85% degradation after 28 days).

•  It has a higher flashpoint, making it a safer fuel to handle.

A full listing of all Inductor Tanks and the available PDF prints can be found in the  "Inductor" category of the "Liquid Containment and Storage" section of the website.

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