July issue Car & Driver, Ethanol

Which means, btw, that there's an "invisible" pump-price increase, since you have to buy 30 percent or so more fuel...

(Same, btw, with RFG and other specalty blends. With those the number is more like five pervent - or $0.15/gallon...)

If the vehicle in question was modified for ethanol the economy would be the same or better. And power would improve. As long as oil rules the world there will be no real effort to further the use of ethanol or anything else (other than gas) for that matter.

Errr.... given that the energy content per gallon of ethanol is less than gasoline, that would be a neat trick.

linkname: EPA - OTAQ - Fuel Economy Impact Analysis of RFG URL:

gasoline: approx 115,000 (depends on exact formula) ethanol: 76,100

I'll let you work out the math as to what an E-85 mix would give you... Hint: It's a lot less than straight gasoline...

Wal-Mart will be adding E-85 pumps to all their gas stations about 500, this will double the total amount of E-85 pumps in the USA.

The problem with any new technology is it is ever evolving. I remember when unleaded fuel became the E-85 and the nay sayers did the chicken little then as now with E-85.

Check out Brazil they are no 100% independent of any foreign oil and have 4 pumps at all gas stations E-100, E-85, E-20 and Unleaded 94. If what has been called a third world country can do it why can't the richest country in the world do it?

It would produce a boom for the corn and cane farmers in this country they would be the next generation oil companies and for once would make some decent money.

Coasty

It's too bad the green movement is full of idiots like you who attempt to defy the laws of physics. You do not know what you're talking about--to an embarrassing degree.

I'm not a member of any "green movement" whatever that is supposed to mean. It is you who is misinformed or more correctly ignorant, do a little research and you'll find what I've said to be true. I could post a couple of links for you but I'm pretty sure you've made up your mind and don't care to educate yourself. Pity.

I haven't. please enlighten me. As a recent immigrant to the Us, i really haven't heard much about ethanol mixes.

Here's a link to a very good article hope you like it.

I do not have to "educate" myself. Although my degrees are in Chemistry & Physics, it is simple math. Since ethanol has a far smaller energy content per gallon than gasoline, it is impossible to have the "same economy" or better. You could post any link you want to, but it cannot change that simple fact.

You could try reading the article in question for a start. LOL.

Wow! Are you ever smart! I'm blown away, you've totally convinced me. Man, am I an idiot.

Don't you find it incredible that people could be this stupid AFTER explaining the simplest thing?

The proof is in the BTUs

Fuel Type Unit of Measure BTUs Per Unit Gallon Equivalent

Gasoline, regular unleaded, (typical) gallon 114,100 1.00 gallon

Gasoline, RFG, (10% MBTE) gallon 112,000 1.02 gallons

Diesel, (typical) gallon 129,800 0.88 gallons

Liquid natural gas (LNG), (typical) gallon 75,000 1.52 gallons

Compressed natural gas (CNG), (typical) cubic foot 900 126.67 cu. ft.

Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG or propane) gallon 84,300 1.35 gallons

Methanol (M-100) gallon 56,800 2.01 gallons

Methanol (M-85) gallon 65,400 1.74 gallons

Ethanol (M-100) gallon 76,100 1.50 gallons

Ethanol (E-85) gallon 81,800 1.40 gallons

Bio Diesel (B-20) gallon 129,500 0.88 gallons

Electricity kilowatt hour 3,400 33.53 kwhrs

Just another dumb ass Coasty

Looks like every source cited there has a different method of accounting for the energy gain.

ahahahahahahahahahaha!

EXACTLY. Another amusing thing is the idiots who scream "Look, he runs his car on french fry oil" because somebody puts free veg oil from the McDonald's he owns into his diesel. If you have your own McDonalds that's great, but if everybody did it, it wouldn't be "free". After 100+ years of development the internal combustion gas engine is a tremendously sophisticated powerplant and will not be soon replaced. The world runs on oil, not because of big oil companies, but because it is the most economical energy source.

I don't know for sure, but it seems to me that we will have to turn ALL the arable areas of the US into sugar cane and wheat or whatever if we are to provide enough Ethanol to replace Gasoline and Diesel. So far corn based Ethanol cost enough to produce (per BTU) that without heavy subsidies from State and Federal Governments and Loan Guarantees to the Farmer based co-op that are building many of them - price alone would keep Ethanol off the market.

I am not against alternate energy sources and the one we are not using that we should be is Nucular Power Generation.

Ed

Yes, it is the fuzzy math method. Some where between lies the truth and I meant lies. Coasty