By Chad Brosius
With all of the talk about fast depleting fossil fuels and the ever climbing global temperature, it can be difficult to catch up with the various environmental issues that are coming to the forefront of things at this
point in time. Science is finding a way to make up for many of the things that are becoming issues as related to the environment, but with many of these things it is a literal race against time to find a substitute for that which we have become dependent upon. Ethanol fuel serves just that purpose.As you may know, ethanol is an alternative to traditional gasoline. Ethanol and gasoline can be mixed together in any ratio on up to complete, 100 percent ethanol. It works just the same as gasoline does, yet it is created differently and does not depend on depleting earthly resources for existence as petroleum does. What is needed to produce ethanol fuel? It is a complicated formula that most people wouldn't understand, but it is easily said that sunlight, farmland, and helping hands are all important in the production of ethanol as it is a substance derived from the starch in produce. There is much debate about whether or not the United States is equipped to handle a transition to using ethanol fuel but the fact remains that after a while, there will be no choice about it and ethanol will be one of those things that are required, along with other types of alternative fuel that are up and coming.
International Ethanol Use
Contrary to what you may have heard, the United States is not the only country out there exploring the use of ethanol as an alternative fuel for vehicles. The United Kingdom is also exploring this issue, as are countries in South America and even some Asian countries. In 2004 there were more than 40 billion liters of ethanol fuel produced, and Brazil produced about 16 billion of those liters alone. The main use for this ethanol fuel? Powering domestic vehicles.
As technology advances and the issue become more and more urgent, the issue of ethanol will be pushed even further; the same goes with other alternative fuels. In the mean time there is much to be debated and figured, such as the amount of land and manpower needed to create the crops that are necessary for this fuel, not to mention the funding to start up such an endeavor. The future of ethanol fuel is not a bleak one at all, and as time progresses you will hear more about and see more of ethanol. Stay tuned!
Chad Brosius is an Earth/Space High School Science teacher who has been involved in the alternative energy field for over 1 year.
Articles such as this can be seen at http://alternative-energy-resources.net
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