Potential for Large Scale Ethanol Production Recent legislation by the Congress of the United States has created a mandate for 5 billion gallons of renewable fuel (notably ethanol) to be consumed annually by 2015. In light of this recent push for alternative fuels, many different biomass solutions have been considered to meet the energy need for the 200 million cars on the road. While the most efficient bio-fuels are derived from palm oil and sugarcane, the Unites States has begun to focus on the more regional corn crops to produce new renewable fuels. This program appears to have great potential towards achieving a sustainable future devoid of foreign oil dependence, until the economic implications of large-scale ethanol production are considered. With that said, it’s important for the United States Government to understand the relative inefficiency, environmental, and social cost of large-scale ethanol production in the US. Ethanol is a fuel grade form of alcohol that is produced from grain fermentation to create a clean, burnable oil alternative (Heinberg, 171). On a small scale, ethanol production appears to be a practical form of energy for farmers, but is limited by its lack of production facilities and unfavorable energy returned on energy invested. Ethanol has an extremely variable EROEI according to several net energy analyses. Cornell professor David Pimentel found a 29% net loss of energy after conducting two independent tests. Both studies found that, “the fuel cost more energy to produce than it eventually delivered to society.” (Heinberg, 173) While this study painted a negative picture for ethanol production, a USDA researcher recognized as much as a 77% energy profit; although, a ... ... middle of paper ... ... farmers needs. Works Cited Evans, Michael K. The Economic Impact of the Demand for Ethanol. Chicago, IL: Diane Co., 1997. 2 Apr. 2007 . Hebert, Joseph H. "Study: Ethanol Won'T Solve Energy Problems." USA Today. 10 July 2006. 2 Apr. 2007 . Hirsch, Tim. "Brazilian Biofuels' Pulling Power." BBC. 8 Mar. 2007. 2 Apr. 2007 . Pica, Erich. "Power Politics: Linking Congress, Campaign Contributions and Energy Policy." Friends of the Earth 6 (2003): 1-2. 2 Apr. 2007. Segelken, Roger. "Ethanol." Health and Energy. 2 Apr. 2007 .
Ethanol is a clean, renewable fuel made from plant material. Ethanol is cleaner than gasoline because it contains more oxygen. The added oxygen increases ethanol's octane rating. The octane rating is the fuel's ability to resist “knock”. Ethanol has a higher octane rating than gasoline. Ethanol above fifteen percent can damage vehicles that are designed to run on gasoline. An ethanol/gasoline (E10) blend is cheaper than just gasoline. The blend does reduce fuel economy by up to 3.3 percent. Car companies have started to produce flex-fuel vehicles. These flex-fuel vehicles can run on fuel with up to 85 percent ethanol. The main problem is
In conclusion, Corn Ethanol Biofuel has many negative and positive effects. It has a negative effect because it releases greenhouse gases but positive effects as well because it is inexpensive to produce and use, and is a renewable source. The future of corn ethanol is uncertain: “Corn-based ethanol will most likely not be the staple fuel source in the future, as it is only a short term solution and poses problems in the long run. Ethanol contains 33% less energy than gasoline, and corrodes engines that it is used in. Average production and final sales are 62 cents/gal higher than conventional gasoline. Even though political support is waning, Congress will most likely not abandon corn ethanol.” ("Future of Corn Ethanol.) I think corn ethanol
Pimental D and Patzek (2005). Ethanol Production using Corn, Switchgrass and Wood; Biodiesel Production using soybean and Sunflower. Earth and Environmental Sciences, 14 (1).
Voegele, Erin. “Flint Hills Resources to acquire Georgia ethanol plant.” Ethanol Producer Magazine. September 8, 2014
Do the gas prices frustrate you every time you pull up to the pump? Gas companies are charging too much for the natural resource that is turned into what we know as gasoline. Gas companies discourage research and new ideas every year. Afraid of losing the market that they have cornered they buy patents. This way the patents will never be used and they still have the market cornered. Ethanol is a much safer and more economical solution to our gas problem. It is cleaner burning and it can be produced from year to year. Ethanol will allow the United States public to get away from the corruption of big gas business and finally be able to enjoy better prices at the pump. The gas companies do not need to be relied on any longer. The United States public should use ethanol. The economic help would be tremendous. It creates jobs, lowers gas prices, and reduces imports of oil to the U.S.
The United States can decrease its dependence on oil-producing nations and improve the environment without robbing every citizen's pocketbook. The gasoline used in most cars today produces pollution, endangers people's health, forces us to be dependent on OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Companies) or other oil production organizations, and contributes to global warming. The main reason people have not converted to cleaner, healthier fuel is that hybrid and electric cars are more expensive than the cars and gasoline we are using now. However, we could implement a program for selling cleaner fuel at a lower cost than it is now offered. If this program were organized correctly, the increased costs would be minimal in the long run and the benefits would be enormous. After considering several possibilities, I concluded that alcohol-burning cars are more practical than other environmentally friendly options because electric and h...
Ethanol production was developed in hopes of severing our ties with fossil fuels in favor of alternative energy, such as biofuels. Although, VOCs emissions are released during production of ethanol in a factory, the quality of air is greatly improved when burning ethanol versus fossil fuels. Burning ethanol instead of fossil fuels reduces the amount of cancer-causing greenhouse gases that go into the atmosphere. Ethanol production ranks at the bottom of industrial water usage, but is still not out of the woods with the abundance of water usage needed in corn feedstock and ethanol manufacturing and processing facilities. Many acres of land are needed to grow corn crops, however, many corn farmers are successful in growing more corn on less acreage.
One day I pulled up to a gas station, and to my surprise I saw a new sticker on the pump. The sticker read,” Fuel may contain 10% Ethanol.” I was a little taken back by the sticker. I didn’t have a full understanding of why ethanol was being used in the fuel for my car. I knew that ethanol was a bi-product of corn and other plants, so I found myself asking the question, is corn for food or fuel? I got back into my car and returned to the freeway with this question on my mind. While driving I started noticing stickers and labels on other vehicles that read: CNG (compressed natural gas), Flex Fuel (allows vehicles to go between 2 different fuels), HEV (Hybrid Electric Vehicle), and Bio-diesel (cleaner burning diesel fuel, made from plants or vegetable oils). As I pondered about the various labeling, I found myself most curious about ethanol and other bio-fuel products.
President Jimmy Carter visited with the president of ADM in 1978 during the Arab oil embargoes and asked that they produce ethanol to supplement the lack of gasoline that would be coming into the US. Studies have shown that ethanol, which is required to be blended into gasoline at least 10%, actually lowers the fuel efficiency of most cars by 5% fewer miles per gallon. The US government has subsidized corn farmers, and the ethanol producers for years and a report from Cato institute estimates that for every dollar of profit made from these products by ADM costed the tax payers around thirty. The same ethanol production process can also be made into gin, so based on the market conditions ADM can either use their facilities to make ethanol or gin on a government
For cellulosic ethanol to be put in large-scale production, the benefits need to outweigh the concerns. Some of the benefits are that it releases 86% less greenhouse gasses than gasoline, and 52% less than corn ethanol. Also, it lowers the emissions of two cancer causing substances, benzene and 1,3-butadiene. Maybe the most important is that cellulosic biomass is more available than any other source of ethanol. Some of the concerns of cellulosic ethanol involve expenses, low fuel mileage, and not being able to produce enough. Cellulosic ethanol costs more to make than gasoline. This is largely because of the expensive enzymes used to separate the sugars. Also, 100% ethanol is not used as an automotive fuel source. The highest allowed [ethanol] is 15%. This is called E85. E85 produces 25% less miles per gallon than gasoline (Nasr,
In this set of materials, the reading passage states the critics of using ethanol as a substitute of gasoline and provides three reasons of support. While in the lecture, the professor opposes the text book and says that ethanol is a good alternative for gasoline. Also, he refutes each of the author’s reasons.
Jacobsson, Staffan & Johnson, Anna, 2000. "The diffusion of renewable energy technology: an analytical framework and key issues for research," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(9), pages 625-640, July
Ethanol as a vehicle fuel is not a new concept. Henry Ford designed the framed Model T to run on alcohol, he said it was “the fuel of the future”. The oil companies thought otherwise, however the oil crisis of the early 1970s gave ethanol fuel the new lease of life. More than two trillion miles have been driven on ethanol blended fuels in the United States since 1980. Ethanol can save our future children generations of work by keeping our planet clean and prevent warfare.
1 Fraiture, C et al (2007) Biofuels and implications for agricultural water use. Water Policy 10 67-81. DOI: 10.2166/wp.2008.054
A gallon of ethanol contains 80,000 BTU of energy compared with 124,800 BTU for the same amount of gasoline. That means the average person would have to buy 1.56 gallons of ethanol for every gallon of regular gasoline. Some would say that it’s cheaper. However, technically, a gallon of ethanol costs 19.9% less than gas, but since it will have to be filled up more often, the ethanol ends up costing more. Many common crops could economically produce biofuels in certain parts of the world. But in other regions, the same plants would be impossible, or extremely costly, to grow. Certain crops will grow better in certain regions and may not grow at all in others. And while the range of oil-producing crops considered viable for biofuel production is wide enough to fit most growing zones, the most productive crops simply won’t grow everywhere. Consumers living in a low producing region would need to have biofuel trucked or piped to them increasing the cost of production and transport. Nevertheless, researchers are working to increase biofuel yields from weather-tolerant crops, but in much the same way that oranges will never be a cash crop in Alaska, there will always be some regions that simply cannot support large-scale production of biofuel-rich