BiofuelA World of Energy |
Ethanol has been around for as long as people have known how to make liquor from corn, otherwise known as moonshine. It’s a simple process of removing sugars from plants and letting the fermentation process change it into alcohol. That’s it in a nutshell. Obviously there’s a bit more at each stage of the process.
In the U.S. corn leads the way in making ethanol, in Brazil it’s sugarcane. A great amount of research is being given to the production of cellulosic ethanol using feedstock like switchgrass. Still, ethanol is not available in all parts of the country, yet. While corn ethanol is being produced in significant amounts producers only produced only about 4 percent of the U.S. gasoline used in 2006.
Automakers, including Ford, Chevrolet and Chrysler, are finally jumping on the bandwagon producing flex-fuel vehicles that are capable of running on E85, a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. Unfortunately because of the lack of infrastructure to provide ethanol it means that most flex-fuel vehicles are run on ethanol blends only about 1% of the time. We’ve got a long way to go and it’s going to take everyone’s support to see the needed changes happen.
According to legend, Prometheus brought fire to mankind, sparking enlightenment. Several millennia later, scientists are exploring wood chemistry to find new sources of energy.
Cellulosic ethanol, or ‘treethanol,’ is a promising new energy source with the potential to mitigate high gas prices, national security concerns, and global climate change. Ethanol derived from cellulose–the complex […]
The facts about ethanol-blended gasoline
Ethanol is an alcohol produced from fermented agricultural products such as corn. It is a clean-burning, renewable, domestically-produced fuel. During the past 20 years, millions of Americans have driven billions of miles on ethanol-blended gasoline, or E-10, which is 10% ethanol and 90% unleaded gasoline.
Safe for any engine
Every major automaker […]
The Indy Racing League is set to make history and leading the way is Rahal Letterman Racing owned Team Ethanol. When the engines fire for the first time this year they are being fueled by corn-based ethanol.
It seems the IRL is willing to put its money where others are only willing to put […]
Ethanol from sawdust, grass and straw made with enzymes and bacteria is coming to a pump near you soon…
