Are you a coffee person? If you are, well, here’s a good reason for you to continue with your ‘drinking’ habit. A research from scientists at the University of Bath recently revealed that waste coffee grounds can be made into biodiesel for powering vehicles.
The coffee fuel is produced by extracting oil from the coffee grounds and soaking it in an organic solvent. A special chemical process known as “transesterification” then converts it into biodiesel.
The fuel properties of the finished product vary depending on the type of coffee ground used but researchers found that all coffee grounds have a standard make up and relevant physical properties, irrespective of the source.
As part of the study, the researchers successfully made biofuel from ground coffee produced in 20 different parts of the world, including caffeinated and decaffeinated forms, as well as Robusta and Arabica varieties.
Dr Chris Chuck, Whorrod Research Department of Chemical Engineering explained, “Around 8 million tonnes of coffee are produced globally each year and ground waste coffee contains up to 20% oil per unit weight.
“This oil also has similar properties to current feedstocks used to make biofuels. But, while those are cultivated specifically to produce fuel, spent coffee grounds are waste. Using these, there’s a real potential to produce a truly sustainable second-generation biofuel,” he said.
A coffee shop generates an average of 10kg of leftovers each day and that is enough to be converted into two litres of the biofuel. Instead of wasting it in the bin, these waste coffee grounds can be converted to biodiesel and power their delivery vehicles, thus saving money on fuel. Recycling at its best we think.
If the process can be scaled up, this could also mean Starbucks or Coffee Bean could be the next petrol providers in the future, what do you think? Leave your comments below.
Source: Autoexpress
