THE BIG GREEN BUS

Students build bus that runs on solar energy and french fry oil
By: Ethan K.

It has been nicknamed the "Big Green Bus". It is the product of the work of 12 Dartmouth students who are showing the the world that alternative fuels do indeed work. They converted a diesel bus into a "vegetable waste oil" bus. They are on a 10,000 mile trek across the United States in their bus that will be fueled with the help of waste vegetable oil from restaurants along the way.

To keep the vegetable oil from thickening in the fuel lines, the students affixed a SunPower SPR-215 solar panel to the roof which powers a fuel warming system. The solar panel provides enough electricity to also power their camera and computer gear inside. It is truly an incredible machine that proves the value of alternative fuel sources and it may be coming to a town near you.