The Department for Transport commissions research on renewable fuels, particularly biofuels, to ensure that there is a robust evidence base for Government policy. This research covers the full life of biofuels from their production, both in the UK and overseas, to their use in vehicles. Details on recent research projects are given below.

2012

• Biofuel effects on diesel performance, emissions and economy in conventional and advanced technologies (PDF 2113 KB).
  This report considers the effects of biodiesel from a number of different feedstocks and blend strengths on the performance of a typical diesel engine and how optimising engine calibration to run on these fuels might change these effects.

2011

Modes research

The following suite of research projects investigates the potential supply of sustainable biofuels through to 2050 and the cost and barriers of a range of options for using these biofuels in the transport sector.

• Scenarios for the cost effective deployment of biofuel in the UK road transport sector in 2020 (PDF 1131 KB).
  This report presents the key findings of the research. It is strongly recommended that readers begin with this report.
• Assessment of the existing UK infrastructure capacity and vehicle fleet capability for the use of biofuels (PDF – 1847 KB).
  This report provides a comprehensive review of the level of biofuel use that is compatible with vehicles and infrastructure, in 2010, across road, rail, aviation and shipping. This work provided input data to the scenarios developed for the main report.
• Development of illustrative scenarios describing the quantity of different types of bioenergy potentially available to the UK transport sector in 2020, 2030 and 2050 (PDF – 658 KB).
  This research provides scenarios for the potential supply of sustainable biofuels. The report was designed as input for the main report and is not recommended for use in other contexts.

Note on revisions: The Department intends to update these reports to reflect the latest projections for fossil fuel and biofuel prices. Updated reports, and a further analysis of biofuel use across transport modes over the period to 2050, will be published once these revisions are complete.

• Report on regional level actions to mitigate indirect land use change (ILUC)
• Regional emissions from biofuel cultivation
• Assessing fuel system compatibility with bio-ethanol and risk of carburettor icing
• Investigation into compatibility of vehicles operating on biofuels
• Year two supporting studies
• Year two of the RTFO (PDF – 2048 KB)

2010

• The Carbon Truste: Between March 2010 and March 2011 the DfT provided funding to the Carbon Trust to help support the development of biofuels from waste and algae.
• Developing a methodology for GHG emissions from ILUC for different biofuel
• Feasibility study for a road vehicle biomethane demonstration project
• Amendments to the UK Renewable Energy Directive Art 19(2) report on emissions from cultivation of biofuels feedstocks in the UK
• Year one supporting studies
• Year one of the RTFO (PDF – 4178 KB)

2009

• Methodology and evidence base on the indirect greenhouse gas effects of using wastes and residues and by-products for biofuels and bioenergy (PDF – 830 KB)
• Mitigating indirect effects of biofuel production (PDF – 2806 KB)
• Biofuels research gap analysis (PDF – 9942 KB)
• Appendices

2008

• Advice on the economic and environmental impacts of government support for biodiesel production from tallow (PDF – 727 KB)
• The gallagher review of the indirect effects of biofuels production (PDF – 1024 KB)

Earlier research

• Emissions performance of vegetable fuel Oil (2003)
• International resource costs of biodiesel and bioethanol (2003)