Features October 16, 2002 itively, it communicates absolute clarity, with no fine nuances. It protects people’s individualism and makes them seem more unusual and interesting. People who like black are profound explorers and original thinkers. It is associated with silence and infinity as well as to the feminine vital force. Since its effects are dramatic, black should be used care- fully. It creates protective barriers, as it absorbs all the energy coming towards you, and it enshrouds Finally, in Vancouver Kathleen Deering Ubyssey VANCOUVER (CUP)—Geoff Hill stands proudly by his “Biodiesel Van,” a hulking orange VW Westfalia beauty, which doubles as both his home and the only existing vehicle at the University of British Columbia (UBC) running solely on 100 per- cent biodiesel, a fuel made from recycled vegetable oil. I admire the new decal pressed to the back win- dow of the van—“We combust your fat.” When the Ubyssey wrote a story about Geoff Hill’s unique project in February, Hill had made only one litre of biodiesel. It was made in a blender and Hill’s VW Jetta served as a test car. He admits he probably could have poured the same amount of peanut but- ter as he did biodiesel in the tank and his car would still have run. Skip forward six months and we find a much dif- ferent biodiesel-making operation. Thanks to the generous support of the UBC Farm, Hill’s fledgling idea is taking on enormous proportions in the back room of a cavernous building near the Animal Science building on the south end of campus. The building is a former pig barn, but once he leads me past the vacant stalls, we come to a spacious room with wide doors to the outside—essential for Hill to bring in the grease he collects from around campus with bike carts. Every drop of used grease on UBC's Point Grey campus is converted into the biodiesel that runs his van. Each week he and his two staff—paid by the Environmental Youth Alliance (EYA)—pump out about 200 litres of fuel. Hill follows a recipe for making biodiesel used by someone in the US—he says improvisations are necessary because the instructions are based on using clean vegetable oil. “Tm really keen on using the recycled vegetable oil, and especially oil from UBC,” says.Hill. “We just did a trip a week ago on a bike cart and filled up about 130 litres of vegetable oil from all the various restaurants and cafés around UBC.” The beauty of Hill’s project lies in its simple trans- fer of energy. Using human energy (the bike carts), he takes used vegetable oil and recycles it into something that is used as energy to power a vehicle. The by-product, glycerin, is also useful. Use of biodiesel helps reduce harmful toxins in the environment like carbon monoxide, hazardous diesel particulate and acid © page 18 the personality. Black works particularly well with white. Black is the colour of mystery and the unknown. Since no wavelengths are reflected, it can be menacing. The colour of classroom walls, curtains or even clothes can either calm or annoy. Colour captures and directs attention. Outlined notes are consider- ably more effective with colour. Colour is an impor- tant tool in visual thinking, for separating ideas so Grease that’s Good for You: Biodiesel Fuels U = rain-causing sulfur dioxide. Why use biodiesel? Pure biodiesel is a renewable resource and reportedly produces an aroma similar to that of french fries when combusted—much more delicious than the smell of regular diesel and gas. It is biodegradable, nontoxic and essentially free of sulfur and aromatics. For any vehicle, biodiesel provides horsepower, torque and miles per gallon similar to diesel. I request a ride in the Biodiesel Van, which is out- fitted with all the essentials—fridge, stove, and sleeping area. It roars to life and sputters noisily, but Hill assures me this has nothing to do with the biodiesel, the van just needs some work. I sit in the back seat and listen to Hill talk about his passion. He started in the Bike Kitchen, a co-operative bike repair shop in the Student Union Building base- ment, mixing the fuel in a blender, and then moved to his bathroom with a large coffee urn. “Everyone started slipping when they went into the bathroom because there was grease all over the place,” he says. It was clear he had to expand. Joined by graduate student Peter Doig, the biodiesel project moved to a tiny bio-resource engineering lab about the size of the current Biodiesel Van. The two found it difficult to make large enough quantities of fuel for the proj- ect to be viable—the 200 litre reaction vessel took up a lot of space—and Hill had higher aspirations. “Now with the farm space,” he says enthusiastically, “we're going to be able to scale it up to make 1000 litre or 5000 litre batches, really big drums.” Hill wants to power UBC with the large quantities of fuel he will be able to make—selling it commer- cially is his next goal. He already has contracts with the university's maintenance department, and biodiesel is expected to power emergency generators around campus. He takes us past some campus lawn the other press they can be seen more clearly. Colour stimulates cre- ativity and aids the memory. It is important which colours you use. Be conscious. The colour that lifts the spirits is yellow. Red relates with the body so when your physical energy is low, the right red will give you more strength. But if you are finding it hard to settle down to work again, blue will give you mental focus. Excelsior! Biodieseling up mowers he expects to be powered by biodiesel next year. Currently, the biodiesel is being tested for qual- ity, and must be approved before this next step goes ahead. There are other alternative fuels that are also good for the environment, but Hill feels that biodiesel has a better chance than most at becoming popular. “Oil products have just been way too easy,” he says, sug- gesting that solar and wind as fossil fuel alternatives haven't been picked up because too many changes need to be made to a vehicle to make use of them. No changes need to be made to a regular diesel- chugging car in order for it to use a partial mix of biodiesel. Some small differences exist; biodiesel has a higher heat capacity than regular diesel—it burns at a higher temperature—so it needs to warm up longer before use than regular diesel does. This high flash point actually makes it safer than many other fuels to use. To run on 100 percent biodiesel, as Hill’s vehicle does, the only change needed is switching the rub- ber tubes that run from the fuel tank to the engine to plastic ones. The Biodiesel Project has come far in a short peri- od of time. Hill is determined to make it go even further, and has his eyes focused on the used grease created by restaurants in Point Grey and Kitsilano, the neighbourhoods that surround UBC’s main campus. Although he likes the idea of using only bike carts to transport the grease, he says they wouldn't be the best option for grease transportation up some of the steep hills leading to the university. Still, it is this potential for growth that keeps Hill dedicated to his project. “There needs to be a shift...of values [about] reusing and recycling,” he says, “and just connect- ing...a lot more with what’s available.”