Soybean oil when thoroughly mixed with lime and distilled would
yield a liquid similar in properties to cracked petroleum. The yield is
70% by volume. In Giant Food Store the price of a gallon of Soybean oil
is $ 6.00. I think it is easy to calculate how much would be a gallon of
gasoline produced by using this method! Don’t forget to add the cost of
lime and distillation apparatus! In general, these alternative fuels are
more expensive than the gasoline and other petroleum products. That is
why there is no incentive for the development of any technology based on
these expensive procedures. These recipes might come handy when we deplete
completely all fossil fuels. I think alcohol, electricity and solar energy
are reasonable alternatives at that time. I hope Mr. Pillai has come up
with a recipe which would provide us with cheaper petroleum products. The
news that the chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu promised
Mr. Pillai financial help to set up an industry are welcome. I wish them
good luck! Sreenivasarao Vepachedu, 10/06/96.
(This article was written when a controversy erupted over Mr. Pillai's
claims that were later proven to be false)
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