The promise of coco diesel
The first time I heard about coco diesel sometime in 2002, I thought it was quack science, up there with water fuel, but apparently it is real science and had been such for decades. BusinessWorld reports that even though the oil companies do not want to sell coco diesel, the government is still pushing through with its plan to make the use of a 1% coco-methylester (CME) diesel blend for government vehicles compulsory. Government offices will be required to make their own mixture of CME and regular diesel. The report further says that:

Government agencies without fuel tank facilities will blend its CME requirements by pouring in the required volume of CME into the vehicles before refueling with the corresponding amount of diesel.

To achieve a 1% CME blend, government agencies will be required to pour 50.5 milliliters of CME for every five liters of diesel put in the vehicles.

Exact what is coco diesel and how is it produced ? Coconut methyl ester or CME is derived from trans-esterification of coconut oil in the presence of methanol and catalyst, such as caustic soda. to produce a crude glycerin that burns in diesel engines without much modification.

Is the mixing of CME and diesel worth the trouble? The product has huge potential, I gather. Coco diesel has a sulphur content of 0.05 per cent compared with regular diesel's 0.2 per cent. It complies with the sulphur content regulation for engine fuel set for the year 2004 by the the Clean Air Act. The Philippine Coconut Authority also claims that coco diesel has no carcinogenic compounds like benzene, paraffin and aromatics.

Environmental good points aside, coco diesel also has the potential to revive the country's moribund coconut industry and augment the livelihood of some 2 million coconut farmers and their families.