Ethanol: Helping to Reduce our Reliance on Foreign Oil (Opinion)
Editor’s Note: This post was provided by one of our paid sponsors, the Ethanol Promotion Information Council (EPIC). EPIC is a nonprofit alliance of ethanol industry leaders who have come together to grow consumer demand for ethanol energy through targeted marketing.
The Ethanol Promotion Information Council (EPIC) is working to get the word out that ethanol is actually helping to keep gas prices lower. The following is from an interview with Toni Nuernberg, executive director of EPIC.
If you’ve been exposed to the media lately you’ve probably heard the phrase “renewable fuels.” What exactly are renewable fuels? According to Wikipedia, “renewable fuels are alternative fuel sources such as biofuels (ethanol, biodiesel -e.g. soy, vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled restaurant greases-) or hydrogen.” Texas Governor Rick Perry recently petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lower ethanol mandates, saying that the production of ethanol was causing food and fuel prices to go up. The EPA rejected Gov. Perry’s request in August, saying that the Renewable Fuels Standard “remains an important tool in our ongoing efforts to reduce America’s greenhouse gas emissions and lessen our dependence on foreign oil.”
- » See also: BP Could Start Selling Biofuels By 2010
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What is the number one thing people need to know about ethanol and gas prices?
Toni Nuernberg: People need to know that ethanol keeps gas prices low. Iowa State University recently released a study that found by adding just 10 percent ethanol to gasoline in the United States, the average motorist will save between 104 and 241 dollars a year. Imagine who much you’d save if you drove a flex-fuel vehicle, which can use E85 fuel, a blend of gasoline that is 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline.
A lot of opponents of corn-based ethanol say that its production is hurting food prices. Is this true?
TN: It is completely untrue; ethanol has very little to do with the rise in food prices. In fact, one of the biggest reasons for higher food prices is skyrocketing gas prices, which has more to do with our dependence on foreign oil than ethanol. Without an alternative fuel source such as ethanol, the price of gasoline could have spiked at least another 14.6 percent. Many people want you to believe that ethanol is taking away from the food supply. In reality, the corn that is used in ethanol, can be used again in livestock feed. It is important to be leary of what is being touted as “fact” by ethanol opponents. Those who have benefited from the current energy situation will not benefit by helping to find a long term, sustainable resolution.
Where is the future of ethanol headed?
TN: Corn-based ethanol is the only alternative energy that is commercially available today. Corn-ethanol has served as the foundation that is helping to build the next generation of ethanol and will continue to play an important role in our energy portfolio. Diversifying from corn-based ethanol to include cellulosic ethanol is a key element to the future of ethanol. Cellulosic ethanol is made from cellulosic biomass materials such as corn stover, sugar cane, sawdust, paper pulp, wood waste, and dedicated energy crops such as switchgrass. Cellulosic biomass is the most abundant organic material on earth. Pilot -cellulosic ethanol plants are being built around the country to test out the technology, hopefully making it available commercially soon.
Western Biomass Energy LLC, owned and operated by KL Process Design, is the first small-scale commercial ethanol plant in production. The facility went online in January 2008. Early research from Argonne National Labs has shown a significant advantage in the production of cellulosic ethanol in that it produces 80 percent LESS greenhouse gas during ethanol production than gasoline production. Not only is ethanol produced cleaner, it also helps your car run cleaner.
More on Ethanol From the Ethanol Promotion Information Council:
- Driving Ethanol
- How Ethanol is Made Animated Feature
- Using Ethanol Fact Sheet
- Domestic Food Crisis Fact Sheet
- Cellulosic Ethanol Fact Sheet
- Environmental Impact Fact Sheet
More on Ethanol From Gas 2.0:
- 2015: 30% of US Corn Harvest Will Be Gasoline
- Ethanol Makers Losing Money Due to Hurricane Ike Damage
- Major Ethanol Producers’ Organization Endorses Obama
- First Cellulosic Ethanol Plant Goes Online, Makes Fuel From Wood Waste
Any particular reason we used a pic of sweet corn to illustrate an ethanol article?
To the best of my knowledge, we are not using any sweet corn to make any fuels.
We will be, using the sweet corn cobs and shucks from the canning processors that is, but I dont believe we have started doing that as yet.
larry hagedon
What is always glossed over or completely ignored is that adding ethanol to gasoline reduces the miles per gallon delivered by the fuel mix. Ethanol delivers fewer miles per gallon than gasoline.
However if ethanol did deliver as the ethanol from corn organization states, corn would still be the worst possible feed stock. We obtain the lowest amount of ethanol per acre of crop from corn. Any of the other sources deliver better ethanol per acre than corn.
It is time to save corn for fodder, food, and the local liquor store.
why do all the natural cars have to be so ugly? cant they make something cute yet natural is that to much to ask?
I read the Iowa study and it didn’t say one word about the energy it takes to produce the ethanol. Assuming the same amount of gas would be used if we weren’t growing corn for ethanol then I would agree with their assessment. However, that cannot be true, so ethanol is actually making energy more expensive by using more efficient sources to produce a less efficient product.
Furthermore, you forget that a lot of farmers are switching their crop of choice to corn because of the ethanol subsidies. This drives up the price of other agricultural products since they aren’t being produced as much.
To answer the post about the inefficiency of E85, please note that FlexFuel engines are simply gasoline engines with a computer to retard or advance the ignition timing, in order to burn both fuels. The result is a vehicle that doesn’t run well on either.
To maximize it’s potential, E85 requires an engine compression ratio of approx. 13 to 1. Most cars on the road don’t even break 9 to 1 (My high performance Mach 1 has 10 to 1).
It should also be noted that drag racing has been using alcohol blends for decades, because of the SUPERIOR horsepower potential. The Indy Racing League has mandated E85 useage, exclusively, and NASCAR is inder pressure to do the same. So much for poor performance, eh?
As to corn as a main fermentation stock? It is a very inefficinet, but easily grown source. Sugar cane, sugar beets and Jerusalem artichoke produce far more ethanol per bushel, or acre, than corn, but the infrastructure for these crops (heavy machinery and transport) is not as widespread as that for corn. Farmers would need to “re-tool” significantly, to produce the same volume as corn. Cellulosic technology will make this far more attractive.
Then all the corn could go to livestock, starving Ethernopians and booze.
Government money should be spent on these cash crops and the technology to exploit them. Then the government needs to back off and let the American farmer and entrepenuer take over.