As the price of gasoline increases more drivers are looking for alternative sources of fuel.
Researchers at the Schulich School of Engineering are two years in to a project to extract bio oil from sawdust or straw.
The process uses the waste from crops that are used to produce food to create oil.
The key is heating the waste product to over 500 degrees Celsius and then it takes about ten minutes before bio oil starts to collect.
The research team is facing a problem right now in that the bio oil they're making can't be directly added to fuel because it's too dirty.
The team is now looking at ways to refine the product.
Creating bio fuel creates two bi-products; bio gas and bio char.
There are potential applications for both, but bio char can be used to treat waste water and as a fertilizer for soil.
Once the research team is able to refine the bio oil they will be looking at building a bio refinery somewhere in the province.
That project won't likely happen until five to ten years from now.
