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You need to catch up on the latest data Posted by Cmyles [Email] (#1126) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Cmyles) on Tue, 3 Apr 2012 20:01:44 In Reply to: No probably not, but it will harm the envirnoment -long, kurt, Tue, 3 Apr 2012 11:45:54 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Kurt, I've been studying ethanol as a motor fuel since the 1970s and I can tell you that argument is based on very old data. Modern corn farming and ethanol production has come a long way and is now much, much more efficient, cost effective and environmentally sensitive than it was just 10 or 15 years ago and the pertinent USDA data (which I keep track of) demonstrates dramatic improvement every year. Ethanol use reduces a significant percentage of our gasoline consumption every year (annual USDOT reports prove that). Ethanol is a short term sequestration carbon fuel with non-centralized fuel production potential. It produces infinitely fewer toxins when burned and, as if that's not enough, virtually cleans itself in the event of a spill. Conversely, is there NO environmental damage from drilling and transporting oil, refining and burning gasoline and don't we subsidize the oil industry just a tiny little bit.
We must find alternative portable fuels and there isn't likely to be a magic, instantaneous leap to the perfect one. The process will no doubt include developing systems and techniques and that will take time, experimentation and maybe even some financial subsidies. Ethanol is extremely promising as an alternative to gasoline but to discard it offhand because it isn't yet perfect in all regards and in spite of the dramatic progress associated with it's production would be short-sighted and contrary to the best interest of our society. Furthermore the future of ethanol probably isn't connected to corn production anyway. Cellulosic ethanol is going to turn the world of liquid fuel on it's head when current research results in a cost effective method of production. Researchers are getting closer to that every day.
E15 won't hurt your modern car in any fashion. It will reduce toxic tailpipe emissions and reduce our nation's use of gasoline (by about 15%).
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