Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
scientificamerican.com
Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
1–10 of 53 posts
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#2As much as I'd like to see us move away from oil, everything I've seen has pointed to corn ethanol not being very good for the task.
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#3"But even setting subsidies aside—after all, every energy source in use in the U.S. today continues to receive federal tax benefits, among other incentives—there's the simple economic cost of building all those corn mills, stainless steel fermentation tanks and other infrastructure needed to churn out ethanol on the tremendous scale of transportation fuels."
Maybe the subsidies should go there, to promote job creation in those areas for the infrastructure buildup.
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#4A million times yes, there needs to be more awareness of how ridiculous corn ethanol is.
Corn ethanol is more an indirect way of converting coal to something your car can run on. There are many other more efficient plant sources that do not require large doses of fertilizer and herbicides, usually drawn from coal energy.
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#5As much as I'd like to see us move away from oil, everything I've seen has pointed to corn ethanol not being very good for the task.
A very promising technology I've had the chance to work with is called SwiftFuel. It's based of switchgrass, which is far more sustainable.
The FAA, due to pressure from the EPA, is looking to switch the entire aviation industry to SwiftFuel from low-lead fuels.
More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avgas#Swift_fuel
SwiftFuel has the advantage of being able to run, in theory, in most/all aircraft engines without modification. (Fuel pumps need to be replaced, however)
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#6american biofuels: subsidized food burning.
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#7A million times yes, there needs to be more awareness of how ridiculous corn ethanol is. Corn ethanol is more an indirect way of converting coal to something your car can run on. There are many other more efficient plant sources that do not require large doses of fertilizer and herbicides, usually drawn from coal energy.
Corn ethanol is an indirect way of converting farming subsidy into electoral college votes.
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#8As much as I'd like to see us move away from oil, everything I've seen has pointed to corn ethanol not being very good for the task.
A very promising technology I've had the chance to work with is called SwiftFuel. It's based of switchgrass, which is far more sustainable. The FAA, due to pressure from the EPA, is looking to switch the entire aviation industry to SwiftFuel from low-lead fuels. More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avgas#Swift_fuel SwiftFuel has the advantage of being able to run, in theory, in most/all aircraft engines without mo…
One problem, land that is ready to grow such crops is finite in supply not infinite..ie same land that corn was used..which will also impact food supplies..
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#9I tried the foreign stuff: It also gave me a hangover in the morning.
Re: Is Domestically Produced Ethanol Worth the Cost?
#10Ethanol itself is far superior to petroleum distillates for internal combustion engines, especially small displacement turbocharged ones. This point needs to be made /extremely/ clear to everyone before pursuing the political end of the discussion.