Vanderbilt Biodiesel Initiative competes for funding
Nate Meltzer
Issue date: 2/5/07 Section: News/Features
I didn't know last September that a series of late-night conversations and energetic brainstorming would one day blossom into the Vanderbilt Biodiesel Initiative. At the time, a few of my friends and I were exploring ways to save gasoline on the weekly trips we took across the Southeast for WilSkills. The cost of gasoline was rising and the full implications of global warming were starting to be known, and we were driving anywhere from 200 to 600 miles a weekend, 12 weekends a semester. We knew it was time to come up with a better way to fuel these trips, and talk began about a whole array of alternative fuels.
It quickly became clear that biodiesel was the most promising and feasible alternative fuel due to its relative ease of production and the availability of waste vegetable oil from Rand. We started to research the production of biodiesel, and learned that a host of peer universities had either already begun production of the fuel or had implemented its use on campus in university vehicles.
As discussions progressed, more and more people became involved, including faculty members who had been dabbling in the production of biodiesel for years. We also realized the university has entire fleets of vehicles that could also benefit from a cheap, reliable alternative fuel source. Thus, the scope of the project was broadened to encompass the entire university community, and the Vanderbilt Biodiesel Initiative was born.
It took relatively little time for the group to become aware of the MTVu/GE EcoMagination Challenge, an annual contest sponsored by the two companies. Entrants had to submit a proposal for a project that would help "green" their college campuses. The winner would receive $25,000 to implement their proposal along with a free concert to coincide with Earth Day. Suddenly we had a goal and a deadline. For the month of November we discussed details of the project, wrote drafts of the proposal, and put together a video, which would serve as our debut to the world.
It quickly became clear that biodiesel was the most promising and feasible alternative fuel due to its relative ease of production and the availability of waste vegetable oil from Rand. We started to research the production of biodiesel, and learned that a host of peer universities had either already begun production of the fuel or had implemented its use on campus in university vehicles.
As discussions progressed, more and more people became involved, including faculty members who had been dabbling in the production of biodiesel for years. We also realized the university has entire fleets of vehicles that could also benefit from a cheap, reliable alternative fuel source. Thus, the scope of the project was broadened to encompass the entire university community, and the Vanderbilt Biodiesel Initiative was born.
It took relatively little time for the group to become aware of the MTVu/GE EcoMagination Challenge, an annual contest sponsored by the two companies. Entrants had to submit a proposal for a project that would help "green" their college campuses. The winner would receive $25,000 to implement their proposal along with a free concert to coincide with Earth Day. Suddenly we had a goal and a deadline. For the month of November we discussed details of the project, wrote drafts of the proposal, and put together a video, which would serve as our debut to the world.
Be the first to comment on this story