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Hybrid Vehicles Ethanol - E85 FlexFuel The Inconvenient Truth About Ethanol
921 messages, Last post on Oct 07, 2009 at 10:53 AM
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Replying to: avalon02wh (Jun 19, 2008 2:38 am) I Also read that several ethanol projects were put on hold when corn hit $6. So this may be the nail to shut the coffin. Anyone that does not see that the ethanol mandate is causing food prices to rise is blinded by their own ethanol profiteering. Permitting is also an issue as people start to realize ethanol is not all it was purported to be. Poet has canceled plans for an ethanol plant in Glenville, Minn., after the process of obtaining the appropriate permits delayed the project for more than a year, the company said Monday. “When we selected Glenville … we believed that we would be holding its grand opening sometime around today,” said Larry Ward, Poet’s vice president for project development, in a written statement. “However, permitting has delayed the project by more than a year and has caused a significant amount of additional costs making it less attractive than other potential projects in the Eastern Corn Belt.” Rick Kment, a biofuels analyst with DTN Research, said permits are becoming a bigger issue as public perception about biofuels has changed. “There’s not necessarily the public support any more for a lot of these plants that maybe, if they had gotten permitted three to four years ago, would have been rubber stamped through,” he said. “Now you have a lot more publicity about these plants and about the [environmental and economic] concerns, so in some cases, getting the appropriate permits companies need to build these plants has become a huge hassle.” “Two or three years ago, you might not have had many people, if any, show up for these public meetings,” he said. “But now everybody’s [airing their concerns], not only of building that plant, but about the whole industry, which isn’t bad but really slows down the process. That’s where I think the permitting is starting to get held up.” |
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Replying to: avalon02wh (Jun 19, 2008 2:38 am) How do you know which gas has it? As with Gary, DFW area all has it, I think. At least by the BTUs, E10 should drop economy by about 3%.
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Replying to: texases (Jun 19, 2008 6:29 am) I'm not sure what the difference is. I know I got about 17 MPG driving in AZ on their gas, and I get 15 here in CA with the crap they sell us at a much higher price. I guess we are paying for a more temperate climate. Knowing the way CARB and the CA legislature love to rip off the public, they probably extract some of the BTUs from our gas 
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Good comparison from the Seattle PI Biofuels Comparison |
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http://www.canada.com:80/theprovince/news/story.html?id=cdb153fe-e5b5-4d5d-8b5b-- a5253dd00d5a Boat owners should be wary of ethanol-blended gasoline and its potential effect on marine engines, say boating experts. Fuel containing ethanol --derived primarily from corn and wheat -- may dissolve the fuel lines on older boats. This ends up clogging carburetors and other engine parts, says Fred Boese, president of Nanaimo's Blue Peter Marine. "Materials have come a long way on the newer boats, but most of the boats on the coast are older and we've been seeing a number of American boats [from states where ethanol fuel blends are already mandated] come in with problems related to their fuel," Boese said. The federal government plans to ensure that gasoline has an average renewable fuel content of five per cent in two years. Unlike petroleum-based gas, ethanol absorbs water, which is not good for fuel-injected engines, said Boese. Problems with the fuel are becoming common in the U.S., where some owners have launched lawsuits against gasoline producers. John Eubank, owner of Skipper's Marine Centre in Nanaimo, said he's "highly recommending" his customers to not use the fuel. "We've heard so much bad news about using the blended gas from boaters around the world that we advise people to stay away from it."
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Replying to: jkinzel (Jun 19, 2008 12:44 pm) |
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Replying to: texases (Jun 19, 2008 6:29 am) The local refinery in Mandan, Tesoro, does not put ethanol in RUG. Or at least they are not supposed to. Apparently we don't always get what we think we are getting in our tank of petrol. http://www.bismarcktribune.com/articles/2007/08/27/news/business/doc46d2f792bcd8- 7651868756.txt "I think. At least by the BTUs, E10 should drop economy by about 3%." That is what I thought. The extra drop of 1 to 2% may not be the result of E10, unless the truck drivers are over filling on ethanol at the rack? I know for example, that E85 is not always 85% ethanol. In winter they sometimes get down to 70% ethanol. http://www.autobloggreen.com/2007/02/27/when-is-e85-not-85-percent-ethanol-when-- its-e70-with-an-e85-st/ I suspect sometimes the E10 is more like E15. Are people gaming the system? Ethanol is cheaper. I wouldn't put it past people to make the occasional mistake and get a bit more of the cheaper ethanol in the blend. After looking at my mpg, it will not be possible to prove that my car is getting worse than 3% mpg by using E10. There are too many variables to consider (wind, new tires, inflation pressures, different terrain). For now I'll stick with plain RUG. Maybe if E10 became 20 cents cheaper than RUG I'll consider it.
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Replying to: avalon02wh (Jun 19, 2008 2:47 pm)  The cheaper the diesel usually the fresher. Never had an issue or mileage shift from CA to TX and back. |
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A few posts back I suggested that the AAA price for E85 was wrong. It had jumped to $3.827. Well, today they are reporting $3.826. That tells me the number is not a typo. A month ago E85 was $3.169.  I think it is "GAME OVER" for E85. Even the most steadfast supporters are going to abandon the fuel now that it costs almost as much as RUG.
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Replying to: avalon02wh (Jun 20, 2008 3:09 am)
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