Coffee never ceases to amaze with the many benefits it can offer. Not only is it a drink meant to fuel some people’s energy and wakefulness to get through their days especially at work, but it wonder of wonders, coffee can also now practically “run a bus.”
For the first time, some buses in London will be powered soon by a biofuel made partly from waste coffee grounds.
The said biofuel is created by mixing coffee oil extracted from the waste of coffee with diesel. Behind the innovation is Shell and technology firm Bio-bean and they announced that such mix can now be added to the bus fuel supply chain in London without the need for modification.
The final fuel blend is composed of 80 percent traditional diesel, 20 percent biofuel. The new fuel provides a cleaner, more sustainable energy solution for buses by ensuring a decrease in emissions. Biofuel producer Argent Energy will also be part of the project.
On average, Londoner drinks 2.3 cups of coffee a day, producing in turn over 200,000 tonnes of waste per year. Bio-beans will target collecting such waste coffee grounds from high street chains and factories.
6,000 liters of coffee-derived biodiesel has been produced, sufficient enough to help power a bus for a whole year.
The proponents behind it see the development as not only exciting for those in London, but also for cities all over the world who are looking to be fueled by more sustainable and energy-efficient transport systems.
The people and companies behind the innovation say it’s also an imaginative way to make full use of an untapped resource. They say such project can also be promising for other heavily motorized countries.
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