Audi proves that motorcar racing can be green

The Audi R10 will be powered by BTL, or biomass-to-liquid, a second-generation fuel that is produced from straw, useless pieces of wood, compost and other things that scientists call biomass.

The previous fuel used in the Audi R10 was also a SynFuel (synthetic fuel), the GTL (gas-to-liquid) diesel, but as it does not come from a renewable source, but from natural gas, carbon dioxide emissions is still a problem.

BTL comes from nature and when we burn fuels made from biomass, only the carbon that was already in the environment is released (Hence no net increase in carbon dioxide to the environment).

BTL solves a major concern about biofuels, the fear that producing energy for vehicles would eliminate space for producing energy for people, or else, that farmers would rather produce diesel than food. The first generation biodiesels are based on the oil extracted from seeds such as soy.

If Audi wins this year Le Mans with the use of BTL, we are confident that this will pave the way for a greener substitute to petrol in the near future.

Credits: Jarvis