Biofuels for lighting?

[Kolesar]

That sounds like an ultimate way to cut energy-conversion losses. Our decorative oil lamps ran on a paraffin oil. Can I just set a match to some corn oil? Can't paddle out to skewer a whale--old shoulder injury.

[Dead_Parrot]

1. Sounds reasonable...

We had candles long before we had oil wells.

[hunter]

2. Years ago I found some sorts of lamps worked well with vegetable oil.

I don't remember which. A few required some minor tweaks, but it wasn't rocket science.

But even the best oil lamps cause troublesome interior air pollution and can be a potential fire hazard. Where I live I wouldn't want to have them around in a big earthquake.

Compact fluorescent lamps and white LEDs use very small amounts of electricity if you are connected to the grid, and a 50 watt solar panel can give you enough light to read a few hours after dark and safely navigate to the bathroom when the sun isn't shining.

[Kolesar]

5. Those paraffin-oil bottles promise a lot

"Burns clean", "no soot" and all that. Could be by the same folks that want to sell us "clean coal".
I found a 2 Watt CFL at www.topbulbs.com
http://www.topbulb.com/find/prod_list.asp_Q_intSubCategory_E_704

[Dead_Parrot]

3. Ever thought of keeping fish?

The candlefish of the Artic is another example of unusual light fuel. The fish is almost entirely fat, and when it is dried a strip of cypress bark is drawn through it with a wooden needle for a wick. This makes it a sort of hybrid between the torch and the candle. Explorers tell us that it burns steadily and furnishes a good light to read by when inserted in a holder made of a cleft stick.

More weird & wonderful ideas at http://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/scienceservice/025054.htm

[Kolesar]

4. Wow. What a story. eom