Spring is in the air as the idea of "going green" takes on a whole new meaning at Nazareth College. The College is recycling the fryer oil from its dining halls and converting it to biodiesel fuel to power a fleet of its vehicles, from facilities trucks to lawnmowers. Nazareth is the only college in the Rochester area refining biodiesel fuel for re-use in its diesel facilities vehicles, and one of just 18 colleges nationwide using the BioPro 190, a refinery that converts the fryer oil into the earth-friendly fuel.
Of course, the idea of converting old fryer oil into biodiesel fuel isn't foreign to Nazareth College: Associate Professor of Chemistry Rich Hartmann has included his students in his extensive biodiesel research, and he teaches the process of biodiesel in a lab setting. Hartmann also drives a truck which runs on biodiesel fuel he makes himself.