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Motoring after the Apocalypse 2; other Alternate Fuels - kato 13
Coal gas generation, right out of WW2 Germany (and other places) IS viable.
Another alternative fuel source is METHANE from composting all the latrines and manure you can aquire, as well as garbage. If for nothing more than to provide cooking gas and lighting, whether to run generator or burn in open flame. (TODAY it is criminal to me that EVERY municipal sewage system in the US does NOT have methane converters for thier system. "Too expensive". I say not smart enough. I recall many cities in Germay with them in the 70's-80's.)
BioDiesel as they wish to call it is what 'ole Ruddie used when he developed his engine in Germany (Diesel's engine). Straight run vegetable oil, perhaps filtered, but unprocessed. In the mid-80's when I went back to college I took and alternative fuels class. We went to an operating farm where the farmer was crushing his own unshelled sunflowers through an extruder screw. There naturally was some oil loss in the process, but that was ok to as the meal was fed to cattle, and the oil helped them. The sunoil however was only filtered through what was about the coursenss if a a bandana and placed into the tank of a diesel tractor (that has been emptied of diesel fuel). We dyno'd the tractor on diesel and sunoil. We observed it plowing heavy soil. Pleaseant smoke. NO significant difference in horsepower or performance was noted. Now the drawback to straight run is it WILL solidify under colder conditions, but so will biodiesel and genuine diesel fuels without additives.
The processing used in commercial production calls for methanol and potassium hydroxide, though I don't know why ethanol and sodium hydroxide would not work. What they are doing is called soaponification, which is partially making soap, to remove the heavy fats, leaving a gylcerol. My idea would be to sort of bypass this and not let the mix get super cold. If it does, heat it someway, perhaps steam?
AN acre of soybeans producing 20 bushels of seed (less than half the now common yield) will yield about 112 gallons (based on 25% oil, which is less than common as well). The problem arises in post-apoc is where do you get the seeds? What is grown today is hybrid. No true reproduction if you can even get it to germinate due to genetic engineering. Still a VERY good idea. Other crops to consider besides soybeans are sunflowers, rapeseed/canola, safflower, peanuts, cottonseed. This is not an all inclusive list, and YES, before I'm unindated, HEMP can be used as well.
As for alcohol production, any plant starchy/sugary or cellulose plant material can be used. Generally you get methanol from cellulose heavy material such as grass/straw/wood, while starchy/sugary yeild methanol. You need the starter yeasts and bacterias to make the transformations, at least in a more timely manner. It takes longer to breakdown the celluloses than convert the starch to sugars, but IMO alot of the starches would be divereted to much needed human consumption, and livestock would be back on grass post-apoc.
Don't mean to be critical to the ideas, as they ARE bonified. I always had problems of running a diesel engine with alcohol. IF it can, it would not do well as it burns too hot I think and the engine would burn up pretty fast.
ANY petroleum would be used for lubricants (motor oil and greases) first, then avgas and jet fuels. Just some input.
Grae