What is Bio Heat?
Bio Heating Oil is fuel to heat your home or business, made of standard, #2 heating oil blended with oil refined from vegetable oil, recycled cooking grease, or animal fats. The oil blend is sometimes referred to as biodiesel or bio-oil. The blend may also be called by a name that indicates the percentage of pure biologically derived oil relative to the fossil fuel oil. For example, a blend of 5% Bio-Oil and 95% diesel or heating oil is referred to “B-5.” The main reason for using these blends is because 100% Bio-Oil (“B-100”) will cloud or gel at very cold temperatures. Using a blend of B-20 or less avoids this problem.
The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) has approved specifications for Bio Heating Oil (D-6751). This standard ensures that the product will not gel at a warmer than expected temperature, and that it will not harm equipment because of poor fuel characteristics. Tests conducted by Brookhaven National Laboratory, the National Oil Heat Research Alliance, and others have confirmed that Bio Heating Oil can be used with few or no modifications to the equipment or operating practices in space heating.
B-100 contains virtually no sulfur, and sulfur is the leading cause of maintenance issues in home heating systems. Using Bio Heating Oil at percentages of 1-30 percent can increase burner life and reduce maintenance costs.
Environmental Issues
Bio Heating Oil reduces particulate emissions that cause lung health problems. Bio Heating Oil is less toxic and less likely to catch on fire accidentally. Pure B-100 is the only fuel to be deemed non-toxic at any level—10 times less toxic than table salt. It even is milder on your skin than soap and water solutions. Bio Heating Oil smells better than petroleum too!
A great debate is going on now about whether biofuels increase or decrease the emission of greenhouse gases. Mass Energy/PP&L is following the debate closely. At this time, we are more enthusiastic about the benefits of biofuels refined from recycled cooking grease.
Wholesale suppliers of this product include MPB Bioenergy in Bridgewater, Massachusetts and Newport Biodiesel in Newport, Rhode Island. We are pointing retail heating oil dealers and policymakers towards that direction, but you may choose biodiesel refined from vegetable oil if your dealer delivers that product.