Blending Diesel with Biomass-Based Nylon Precursor Cuts Soot by 50%

Treehugger.com
by Michael Graham Richard, Ottawa, Canada on 04.20.10

A doctoral student and researcher at the Technische Universiteit Eindhoven has created a new type of diesel fuel that produces significantly less soot than conventional diesel. This was accomplished by mixing 10% of cyclohexanone ((CH2)5CO, a precursor of nylon) with 90% regular diesel. The new blend, called Cyclox, ignites more slowly than diesel, allowing oxygen and the fuel to mix better and burn cleaner. Even better, cyclohexanone can be made from lignin, a part of the cell walls of plants and trees. The paper industry produces a lot of waste lignin.

Read more