The tires may be new but the scarlet interior has seen better days. It's oxidized paint and missing fenders gives this particular Ford F-350 the look of a beater strait off the farm.

But despite its battle scars the 1987 truck, parked last week in the UM-Helena College of Technology diesel lab, drew a crowd before it was filled with refined french-fry-oil and sent off on 1,000 mile tour to promote renewable fuels in Montana.

Standing beside the old truck and two barrels of locally brewed biodiesel, Matt Elsaesser, executive director of the SAVE Foundation (or Student Advocates for Valuing the Environment) described the tour as a way of promoting the fuel's economic and environmental benefits.

The tour, which includes biodiesel demonstrations and free performances by country singer Jason DeShaw, a native of Plentywood, began Saturday in Helena and will travel as far as Miles City before ending in Missoula.

"Biodiesel has proven potential as an alternative fuel," said Elsaesser. "It can benefit the environment and local economy, particularly in the agricultural areas of Montana."

The biodiesel future received a big boost last week when the U.S. Department of Labor presented the state with a $15 million check to begin creating a biodiesel and bioproduct industry in Montana.

The state was one of 13 applicants selected from 96 that applied for the grant, known as the Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development Initiative (WIRED).

Robin Shropshire, a member of the science faculty at UM-Helena, helped write the grant, though she gave much of the credit to Michelle Robinson of the Montana Department of Labor and Industry, and Emily Sirota of the governor's office.

"The idea here is to plant canola-based crops and take them to a crushing plant to generate bio-fuel," Shropshire said. "Biodiesel provides renewable energy at a time that it's becoming more important. It also provides jobs for ranchers and farmers in eastern and central Montana, which gives them ownership in what they're growing."

Shropshire called the biodiesel refining process "simple bucket chemistry" that promises both environmental and economic rewards.

Armed with an eyedropper, Shropshire took a fuel sample from one of the twin drums sitting beside the truck. The golden fuel appears the color of vegetable oil and it's no wonder, since this particular batch was made using discarded french-fry grease collected from several local restaurants.

But biodiesel can also be made with various crops, including soybean and canola. That promises economic rewards to Montana farmers who, in the near future, could find themselves powering the state's diesel engines, if not their own tractors.

Starting next year, diesel engines will also come under stricter emission standards as a crackdown on sulfur and particulate emissions goes into effect. Along with grants like WIRED, the tough standards may expedite the need for renewable fuels, since they burn so much cleaner.

"Environmental regulation drives industry," Shropshire said. "The emissions from this biofuel are at a safe and healthy level."

Shropshire admits that biodiesel still has problems that must be overcome if it's going to emerge as a mainstream fuel. Since biodiesel contains methanol, for example, it tends to corrode rubber hoses. It also begins to gel at around 24 degrees, making it useless for some climates unless treated with additives.

Here in the UM-Helena lab, students and teachers have come together in a unique hands-on program to tackle those problems. With its exposed frame and fading paint, the "Vegi-mobile," as it's being called, has become something of a rolling laboratory, testing home-grown biofuel and the engine that burns it.

"I can see us offering a biofuel class here at UM-Helena, or any alternative fuel class," said Tom Davis, a diesel technology instructor at the school. "We're trying to break into this biodiesel thing. But a lot of it will depend on funding and whether or not this moves beyond the homegrown level that it's at right now."

Davis ran his hand along the truck's 22-gallon tank. Several hoses extend from the tank to the engine. He and UM-Helena student Salen Evman, who helped retrofit the truck, are worried about the fuel gelling on cold winter days.

"The only problem with bio is that it's not conducive to cold weather," Davis said. "We'll circulate engine coolants around the tank and the lines and see if that helps keep the fuel from gelling."

When the fuel gels it takes on the consistency of bacon grease, clogging the lines. As the project advances, Davis admitted, alterations may be needed to further perfect the technology.

For example, the 7.3-liter, 190-horsepower engine tends to drop 10 percent of its power when burning biodiesel. Davis doesn't think that will be a long-term problem. He plans to boost performance by increasing the injection pressure and advancing the timing.

What's more, a normal diesel motor returns as much as 30 percent of the fuel it advances back to the tank. Doing so keeps the fuel warm, which improves engine performance.

But starting the truck on a cold day may be a challenge. So for now, Davis said, the truck's smaller auxiliary tank will be filled with standard petroleum diesel. The tank will be accessed when starting the truck and warming the motor.

"I've put these cold-weather packages on diesel trucks that run to Alaska," Davis said. "But they don't make these kits for pickups, so we built our own."

Evman did most of the truck's conversion work in his spare time. The vehicle itself was donated to SAVE by Carroll College professor Murphy Fox, while the equipment used to mix the fuel was lent by Tanner Franklin, a former UM-Helena student who, for the past several years, has brewed biodiesel at home for his Volkswagen bus.

In fact, it was Franklin who helped concoct the winter blend now stored in the two drums sitting in the lab. The blend helps keep the fuel from gelling when temperatures drop, though it doesn't solve the problem completely.

"It took about two days to make the fuel," said Caleb Cantwell-Frank, a member of SAVE who helped mix the latest batch of fuel. "Basically, we did a 55-gallon batch each day."

"We had to thaw the vegetable oil before we could start, because it had been left outside and froze," added Alaina Garcia, a Carroll junior and SAVE member. "It made the process take a little longer."

As much as 75 million gallons of biodiesel was produced in the U.S. last year, much of it by Seattle Biodiesel, one of the nation's largest manufacturers.

Still, it's a drop in the bucket when compared to the 67 billion gallons of petroleum-based diesel fuel consumed in the U.S. each year. Montana officials hope to fill the emerging niche, at least in part, with the new WIRED grant. The potential has Shropshire excited for the future of her school.

"If you can bring real projects to the classroom, students enjoy that more," she said. "This biodiesel project gets disciplines across our campus working together."

Reporter Martin Kidston can be reached at 447-4086, or at mkidston@helenair.com.