Petrol cars run on bio-methanol in a pilot in Denmark

21-10-2021 | In a new experiment in Denmark, around 100 cars will run on biomethanol (M85) from biogas and manure for two years, as an alternative to petrol.

Lars Thomsen, chairman of the Danish Methanol Association, has been driving on biomethanol now for one year, in his Peugeot 108. by using M85, due to the lower well-to-wheel carbon intensity of the biomethanol, the car lowers its climate impact with 70%,as compared to driving on fossil petrol.

Petrol cars will come down to the same level as electric cars in terms of CO2 emissions - about 40 grams per kilometer. We can achieve this already today - it's just a matter of refilling, then we drive as green as an electric car, says Kim Winther of the Danish Technological Institute, and project manager of the experiment, to TV2 ØSTJYLLAND.

Mr. Winther further  indicates that the requires "a small program change at the gasoline cars so they can run on biomethanol." "There are no problems with that. The only thing is that you have to refuel a little more often, because the calorific value is lower", says Mr. Thomsen.

The Biometanol M85 project at Danish petrol stations is supported by the Danish Energy Agency's development program EUDP, which has the ambition to test M85, which is a fuel mixture consisting of 85 percent methanol and 15 percent petrol.

Skanderborg Municipality is also part of the project - and so is the City of Copenhagen. Here they provide some municipal cars that will run on biomethanol.

"We must move away from CO2, and we must move away from petrol and diesel. We would prefer electricity, but there is already a large car fleet. If we are to reach the goal of the 70 percent [in 2030 - PDB], then it is not just the municipality, then it is all of us. And we want to be a catalyst to push for that development", says climate coordinator in Skanderborg Municipality Susanne Skårup.

This could be an interesting development to increase the share of renewable fuels in petrol fueled cars, as currently the share of renewable fuels in petrol is about 5-10%,  based on the blending of ethanol in E95 or E10.

More information (in Danish) is available in this web-article: https://www.tv2ostjylland.dk/skanderborg/saadan-kan-din-benzinbil-koere-ligesaa-groent-som-en-elbil

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