Is Bioheat® Fuel Renewable Energy?

Written on: June 29, 2023

Renewable Biodiesel Blended with Heating Oil

If you’re among the many people in Maine who live in an oil-heated home, there’s a good chance that your heating oil company delivers a product that contains renewable ingredients that are making a significant impact in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

That’s because many heating oil companies in Maine now deliver Bioheat® fuel—renewable biodiesel fuel blended with ultra-low sulfur heating oil. Bioheat fuel helps contribute to lower greenhouse gas emissions because it burns more cleanly than traditional heating oil. This also saves you money because of improved heating efficiency.

What Is Biodiesel?

Biodiesel, also known as biofuel, is a gallon-for-gallon substitute for petroleum-based fuels, which have a higher carbon intensity. By 2030, it’s estimated that biodiesel will displace 529 million gallons of heating oil.

Biodiesel is generally produced by agricultural byproducts, including used cooking oil, animal fats, inedible corn oil, soybean oil and canola oil. This puts excess oil and fats that would otherwise be discarded to good use. Food is never sacrificed for fuel in the production of Bioheat fuel. Bioheat fuel is also sourced and produced right here in the United States, supporting local farmers, local industries and local economies.

One of the latest biofuel products is called EL 100, which is short for ethyl levulinate. It is made by processing woody fiber waste that comes out of lumber and paper mills. This is an emissions-free biofuel that’s safe to use with current home heating oil systems.

The goal is for this new organic chemical compound to be created with more than 100 tons of wood waste per day, resulting in an estimated three million gallons of clean heating oil per year. The idea is that any cellulose-based waste, from old boxes to wood pulp (or any wood biomass) to sawdust, will be converted into crude oil through a chemical-free process driven by heat and pressure. Read about production plans in Maine for this biofuel.

Bioheat Fuel: Readily Available in Maine

Bioheat fuel is readily available now through local retail oil companies and it requires no modifications to your existing system. Bioheat fuel has three tiers, based on the percentage of biodiesel it contains:

• Bioheat fuel is made up of blends that range from 2% to 5% biodiesel (B2 to B5)
• Bioheat Plus® fuel represents blends that range from 5% to 20% biodiesel (B5 to B20)
• Bioheat SuperPlus® fuel designates blends that contain more than 20% biodiesel (B20+)

Other Renewable Fuels in Use Today

Beyond biodiesel and Bioheat fuel, there are other sustainable products that are transforming how we live our lives and slowing the harmful effects of climate change:

• Renewable diesel is a biomass-produced diesel fuel that differs from biodiesel in several ways. Technically a hydrocarbon, renewable diesel is chemically identical to petroleum diesel. As such, it doesn’t need to be blended with petroleum for use.
• Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) is fuel for aircraft made from renewable biomass and waste resources. It offers airlines the opportunity to reduce their carbon footprint significantly. Right now, the U.S. Departments of Energy, Agriculture and Transportation are working on plans to scale up the production of SAF.
• Renewable propane isn’t in wide use right now, but its production grows substantially each year. Just as conventional propane is a co-product of oil refining, renewable propane can be described as a co-product of biodiesel production. Molecularly identical to conventional propane, it’s made using many of the same feedstocks as biodiesel. Renewable propane has less than half the carbon intensity of conventional propane and roughly 22% of the intensity of grid electricity.

Read more about renewable propane.