CFCC students make bio-fuel

WILMINGTON — If you’re tired of paying at the pump, Cape Fear Community College may have come up with a way to cut some of the costs and help the environment at the same time.

Made right in the college’s labs by faculty and students, the bio-fuel burns cleaner than diesel.

Representatives say it can also get the same gas mileage for your car as B20, the special blend of 20 percent bio-diesel and 80 percent petroleum diesel.

CFCC lead instructor Cal Geary said, “Our trucks that we have here at the school, we burn one gallon per cylinder, per hour. So if you’ve got a six cylinder, you’re going to put six gallons in that engine, regardless. And it’s going to be the same thing with bio-fuel. It’s just going to lubricate the engine better.”

That also means fewer oil changes. The oil for the fuel is recycled from places like fast food restaurants.

Representatives say the college plans to test the fuel itself by putting it into its own vehicles.