Ethanol is a type of alcohol that is made from plants like corn or sugar cane. It is often used as a fuel in cars, but it can also be found in alcoholic drinks like beer and wine.
Full definition
Most car manufacturers now permit the use
of ethanol blends of 10 % or less in all gas - powered vehicles.
The potential capacity
for ethanol production from corn is fairly limited.
They dropped their own blend of
ethanol in gasoline from 25 % to 20 %.
A number of companies are also trying to convert municipal solid waste
into ethanol using a range of processes.
Many people don't realize that our bodies
produce ethanol in small amounts daily.
I would not advocate pulling the support out from under the corn
ethanol industry, but I would be looking for an exit strategy.
Probably because
ethanol mandates and electric car subsidies are lucrative sources of federal grants, loans, subsidies and tax credits for «alternative fuels» and electric cars.
Federal law mandates that oil companies use 12 billion gallons of renewable fuels such
as ethanol in this year, rising to 15 billion gallons by 2015.
New generations of biomass energy — ones that do not rely on food crops, unlike the mistaken strategy of
making ethanol from corn — are extremely promising.
We can end our dependency on oil by powering our SUVs
with ethanol made from corn.
But if I had to choose new green subsidies that are based
on ethanol production.
This wrong - headed policy, pushed by an aggressive farm lobby, gives a 51 - cent tax credit for each gallon of
ethanol blended into gasoline.
After 2014, the mandated
ethanol use in gasoline would revert back to the scheduled increases.
The suggestions include setting up a $ 1 billion loan program for existing
ethanol producers to stay in business.
The advantage, they say, is that these biofuels do not need the separate transport system required
by ethanol, and can be produced from almost any biomass.
However this is above current use which stands at 4.7 %, and includes a contradictory compulsory target to blend
more ethanol into the petrol mix.
A growing global population is largely responsible for greater food demand but alternative fuels
like ethanol also play role in increasing demand.
The engine is most efficient with high
ethanol content but any mix works well.
«This lack of parity puts imported
ethanol at a competitive disadvantage against imported oil,» the letter states.
So even if
ethanol didn't increase food prices and could be produced for free.
You might be tempted to use a
higher ethanol blended fuel since it may be less expensive.
Those of us who knew
about ethanol production with current technology knew it was going to produce server problems in the food and energy markets.
The Flex Fuel option on this vehicle provides the ability to get increased mileage from fuels
containing ethanol.
This issue is important to automotive enthusiasts
because ethanol's chemical properties pose a risk to older cars and motorcycles.
The second point is that there would be no need for mandates or subsidies
if ethanol could compete with other fuel components on cost and quality.
First, producing
ethanol requires huge amounts of energy — most of which comes from coal.
When ethanol prices at the pump rise for whatever reason, it becomes economically advantageous for drivers of dual - fuel vehicles to fill up with gasoline.
For example, corn
ethanol yields less energy than is required to grow and produce it.
In the most conservative countries, low - risk consumption means drinking no more than 10 g of
pure ethanol per day for women, 20 g for men.
The negative consequences need to be a part of the analysis when determining whether to continue pursuing
ethanol policies.
Forget that the $ 5 billion + / year federal
ethanol program has often been marketed by its legislative champions as a climate - change remedy.
This system, now well established in the
Brazilian ethanol industry, is spreading to sugar mills in other countries that produce the remaining 80 percent of the world sugar harvest.
A new blend of
ethanol gas is also being currently sold at numerous stations that could also be potentially harmful to your car.
While ethanol always results in more ozone, different conditions can result in less or more of a difference.
Studies have shown that using fuels composed of more than 85 percent
ethanol reduce a variety of air pollutants.