DME can be made from anything that contains methan

DME can be made from anything that contains methane – food, animal waste, wastewater and landfills, and natural gas. It's non-toxic, too, and is already used in hairspray and other products, according to Oberton’s president, Rebecca Boudereaux.

What’s good about DME is that it doesn’t congeal or thicken in colder climates, like diesel does.

In March of 2008, Volvo presented a study on environmentally friendly fuels and brought seven alternative fuels to Congress: biodiesel, methanol, ethanol, CNG, LNG, synthetic diesel and DME.

"DME tested the best out of these fuels," said Göran Nyberg, president of Volvo Trucks North American Sales and Marketing.

Volvo's Ed Saxman, marketing product manager, Alternative Fuels, explained that they measured the diesel gallon equivalent of LNG, CNG and DME. In terms of diesel equivalent, DME and CNG both need twice the amount to match diesel.

"LNG only has half the energy of diesel. You want to pay for the energy you buy, not the amount of fuel," said Saxman.

DME mirrors the performance qualities and energy efficiency of diesel, and burns clean without producing any soot, according to Volvo.