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Hybrid Vehicles Ethanol - E85 FlexFuel Is Ethanol good for the environment?
165 messages, Last post on Sep 24, 2008 at 5:25 AM
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For those interested in using E85 you may want to read the hazards. This study is from LSU. Ethanol is not real safe to handle. http://www.camd.lsu.edu/msds/e/ethanol.htm#Health |
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"The ALA [American Lung Association] and many environmental groups supported a 2% oxygen requirement for RFG [reformulated gasoline] in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 based on the assumption at the time such requirement would guarantee reductions of VOCs, and toxics. We now know we were wrong. .... The volatility increases that ethanol causes in summertime can overwhelm any benefit it provides in reducing CO tailpipe emissions, sulfur dilution or aromatics dilution. That is why the ethanol industry only talks about tailpipe emissions benefit from ethanol in RFG. The ethanol industry often quotes last year's National Research Council study of reformulated gasoline as finding that CO reduction credit should be included for ethanol in EPA's complex model for RFG because CO tailpipe emissions contribute to ozone formation. But they fail to acknowledge what we believe to be a more important finding. The NRC report stated, '...the increase in the evaporative emissions from the ethanol-containing fuels was significantly larger than the slight benefit obtained from the lowering of the CO exhaust emissions using the ethanol-containing fuel.' .... The bottom line: the reduction in CO tailpipe emissions obtained by using ethanol in summertime gasoline are not worth the increase in evaporation and the increases in NOX emissions from a smog contribution point of view. Incidentally, the increases in evaporation do not just contribute to ozone formation. Since the gasoline also contains toxic aromatics, such as benzene, these will evaporate more readily along with the ethanol. While ethanol may dilute the amount of benzene in a gallon of gasoline, the amount of benzene that ends up in the ambient air due to increase evaporation from the fuel may be greater than if the ethanol were not added at all." The National Research Council study referred to above is regarded as the definitive scientific study of ethanol. The title of their news release says it all "Commonly Available Ethanol and MTBE Gasoline Blends Do Little to Reduce Smog". Even the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor, who tries as hard as possible to put a happy face on their state's aggressive ethanol policy, admits "we think the NRC report is currently the most independent, authoritative document available to policy makers." Very recent evidence suggests even more serious cause for alarm regarding ethanol use. Professor James Garvey of SUNY-Buffalo has discovered that nitric oxide, a common air pollutant, combines readily with ethanol to form highly reactive gas-phase clusters. The implication of this discovery is that the sum of NO and ethanol emissions is more dangerous than its parts. Of course the EPA is well aware of the pollution problems caused by ethanol, especially the fact that it increases serious hydrocarbon evaporative emissions during warm weather. http://www.powerweb.net/heisey/dirtyair.htm |
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According to report from IEA (International Energy Agency). This year, more Flex fuel vehicles than Gasolene vehicles were sold in Brazil. In Nov, 71 % of the vehicles sold were FFV. Brazil is expecte to export the fuel to other countries as well. |
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Ethanol, a fuel that's backed by state and federal governments and viewed as a boon to corn farmers in the Midwest and South, may make it harder to breathe in Louisville this summer. While governors in more than 25 states, including Kentucky and Indiana, tout it as a way to make gasoline burn cleaner, there's new evidence ethanol can worsen some types of pollution linked to damaging health effects -- namely ozone and fine particles. And that could make it harder for cities like Louisville, where it already is being used, to meet air standards. "There is growing evidence that when used in the summer with reformulated gasoline, ethanol actually creates more smog and fine-particle soot," said Frank O'Donnell, a longtime clean air advocate in Washington, D.C. http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050421/NEWS01/504210- 377/1008 |
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"The bottom line is that both the motor vehicle industry and the refining industry have evolved since the early 1990s, when these requirements went into effect," remarks Frank O'Donnell, director of the Clean Air Trust, an air-quality-defense group put together nine years ago by former U.S. senators Edmund Muskie of Maine and Robert Stafford of Vermont. "Oxygenates aren't necessary anymore. Modern cars have oxygen sensors that adjust the air-to-fuel ratio, which is one of the things that oxygenates were supposed to do. And we have better fuels." Ethanol Not so good |
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In 1979, 2 university professors said that ethanol yields lesser output than input and still today some critics are holding on to that older research. If ethanol is bad for health, then how much will the gasolene / diesel will be with so much toxic substances in them. Just compare between the 2 and ethanol will be much safer. Currently Flex-Fuel vehicles which Ethanol are the powerful alternative to Gasolene and hence the oil lobby is crying about it. 2005 started with Oil Prices at $43 and ended at $61. If this is the way, Ethanol will continue with its Forward March.
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Replying to: yerth10 (Dec 31, 2005 8:28 am) That is what they said about MTBE and look how that turned out. The EPA knows the truth, they are hog tied by greedy politicians. No different than the oil companies mind you. Just a different bunch of corporate thugs. Looking at Brazil and their insistence on Ethanol, is interesting. According to most environmental groups that is an ecological disaster of epic proportions playing out. Check out where they get their ethanol. |
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 In 1908, the Ford Model T was designed with a carburetor adjustment that could allow the vehicle to run on ethanol fuel produced by American farmers. * Since it was first launched in 1975, the Brazilian Ethanol Program remains to date the largest commercial application of biomass for energy production and use in the world. By the mid-'80s, most cars coming off the production line ran on pure ethanol. From the 1970s to the late '90s, ethanol yields per acre had risen from 242 to 593 gallons. Indústria Aeronáutica Neiva, a wholly owned Embraer subsidiary, has received type certification for its ethanol-fueled Ipanema cropdusting aircraft from Brazilian aviation regulating agency Centro Técnico Aeroespacial (CTA). The Ipanema is the first series production aircraft in the world coming out of the factory certified for flying with ethanol. These 3 examples just show that Ethanol is around for a long time, but actually just got acceptance in the last few years. In these days with record high oil prices, more and more governments are promoting the production and usage of ethanol. Didn't the corn growers in the US already appreciate rising corn prices? Why would Bill Gates invest $84 Million in an Ethanol company, if he wouldn't see the potential of this alternative fuel? Willie Nelson is doing well with his sell of Biodiesel, as I understand. So in our perspective, the doors are wide open for this renewable energy source and it will be the future in the energy sector.
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Replying to: biomaxx (Jan 09, 2006 8:17 pm) 1st. How do you propose overcoming the well documented transportation problems? 2nd. How can additional land be used for corn or sugar cane production, with the known environmental degradation? 3rd. Are any other crops such as Switchgrass capable of making significant inroads into the use of corn for ethanol? 4th. What is being done to clean up the ethanol production facilities? |
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http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2006/01/02/202904.html Brazil improved upon this Flex-Fuel technology and these vehicles captured 2003 - 6 % 2004 - 17 % 2005 - 53 %. Awesome growth. Also in 2005 Brazil sold 4.4 billion gallons of Ethanol and USA sold 4.0 billion gallons. That may be roughly equal to 32 million tons. Last year 3,700 million tons of Oil is sold. So Ethanol sales have are nearly 1.0 % of Oil sales. Also last year, oil consumption increased only 1.5 %, but Ethanol is growing by leaps and bounds as many countries are looking forward to it. |
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