Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

im doing a project on bio diesel vs. other gasolines and i need to know a good way to test the efficiency of these fuels without a car or expensive products

for example im going to make bio diesel using different types of oils and compare them all and compared to regular diesel, but i need to find a way to test how long each fuel will last

I was going to do something like this - kgruder suggested to me that I use a small engine, measure a small amount of fuel (like 50mL), then let the engine idle until it stopped. A small engine would be something like a lawnmower.

You can see his original suggestion under the topic "Too many uncontrolled variables?".

Hope this helps.

so you believe that a regular engine will be able to run on diesel fuel

Oops, sorry!

Guess I'm not an expert...