There has been so much hype over ethanol. In the last year alone, there has been a 60% increase in the number of gas pumps offering this gasoline alternative. So, is ethanol the answer to ballooning fuel costs? Find a list of Ethanol Pros and Cons below and decide for yourself. Pros A SIZABLE PRICE DIFFERENCE - It is true, Ethanol mix is indeed much cheaper than pure gasoline. You can save around 20 - 30 cents when you use ethanol instead of gasoline. That can add up, especially if you are driving a 17 gallon SUV that eats fuel up like crazy. A DECREASE IN CARBON MONOXIDE CAR EMISSIONS - Another good thing about using ethanol instead of pure gasoline is the fact that ethanol decreases carbon monoxide emissions. When you use ethanol mix instead of gasoline you are decreasing your car's greenhouse gas emissions by 30%. LOCALLY MANUFACTURED - The biggest selling point of ethanol is the fact that it can be grown and manufactured within the country. Now, there is no need to buy staggering amounts of fuel from foreign countries just to keep your car running. Cons Mind you, ethanol isn't as pristine as their manufacturers would have you believe. Sure, it is much easier on the environment compared to gasoline. But, it still contributes to greenhouse gases in one way or another. For now, Ethanol seems like a great alternative to rising Fuel Costs, but dependence on it should not be developed. Some issues regarding the use of Ethanol to counter the rising Fuel Costs are found below. WORLD HUNGER FOR WORLD FUEL - Most of today's ethanol is produced from farm raised corn. It means that more and more farmers are now growing corn for fuel instead for food. That presents a very real threat to world nutrition. In fact, the nightmare has already begun. Hispanic countries have rallied on their streets demanding a decrease in the price of the food staple. Is the world really willing to forgo feeding its people just so its cars can run? Hopefully, not! INCONVENIENTLY TRANSPORTED - Unlike gasoline, Ethanol cannot be transported through pipe line. Its chemical composition makes iy Hydrophilic (attracts water to itself). And ethanol mixed with water is virtually useless. That is why ethanol has to be transported by trucks. That means more fuel is used even before ethanol gets to a pumping station. CARS DON'T RUN ON ETHANOL ALONE - Ethanol alone doesn't have enough energy to be an efficient fuel source. It needs to be mixed with Gasoline. That means that Ethanol doesn't necessarily rid the world of her dependence on gasoline. It just decreases it. With the rising price of gasoline, soon even the angelic Ethanol will be too expensive. Other Answers to the Fuel Cost Crisis The hype over Ethanol has effectively overshadowed other more worthy fuel saving wonders. Hybrid cars for instance, they are a great answer to the rising cost of fuel. You can go for miles on end without having to fill up every now and again. Then there are Electric Cars and Zero-Emission Vehicles that can run without hurting the environment. What about those solutions? Maybe it's time fuel companies focus on those solutions more and put ethanol to bed - before it gets out of hand. The author of this article is Benedict Yossarian an Internet Marketing Consultant. If you are learning to drive and practicing for your theory testBenedict recommends TheoryTest.co.uk Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Benedict_Yossarian
Reducing Fuel Costs - Is Ethanol the Right Solution?
Making Ethanol Gas - What Does it Contain?
Ethanol gas is made through the same method of distillation and fermentation as beer is made today. Agricultural crops are used because they contain compounds of six-carbon sugars. When ethanol is made from grain, the starch is combined with water forming a mash. To separate the sugars that are fermented enzymes are added to the mash once it is heated. Then next step to making ethanol gas involves adding yeast for conversion of the sugars to the ethanol and carbon dioxide, known as fermentation. This process actually produces beer, which contains 10% ethanol and 90% water. The beer needs to be boiled. Boiling allows for separation of the water, resulting in ethanol that is fuel-grade and almost 95% pure. When ethanol is made from grains, only the starch is used. There are many different products which can be used in making ethanol gas which include feed for livestock, wood waste, cheese whey, potato waste, food and beverage waste, and more. California is planning to produce rice straw specifically for ethanol use. Louisiana will produce their ethanol from bagasse and rice hulls while New York and Alabama will use municipal solid waste. The amazing thing about making ethanol gas is that it is a renewable fuel. Unlike other alternative fuel options that still require a little bit of gasoline to run, this fuel can be made from things that can be reproduced. Ethanol fuel is one of the best solutions for running a vehicle clean without emissions and all of the ingredients are natural. The ingredients for ethanol can vary because the importance is to extract the sugars and ferment them like beer. The Author Drives His Own Electric Car And Reveals A Few Secrets For FREE On How To Convert A Car To Electricity! Click Here For More Information. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jonathon_Winburg
Ethanol And Hybrid Cars
Hybrid cars are starting to gain a modicum of popularity in the world market and this popularity seems to be growing. Current fears regarding climate change combined with rising costs of gasoline have led to great public interest in hybrid cars although this interest has not entirely yielded huge sales at present. This has led to many people wonder about the future of hybrid cars a
The future of hybrid cars will always center on the state of ethanol as ethanol remains the active component within the internal combustion engine process that makes hybrid cars possible. Since ethanol derives from corn, the status of corn farming will always have an impact of the future of hybrid cars. This can be a somewhat curious status to predict because corn is also an important food source for many people and if corn supplies are directed towards fuel production there is a possibility that an unexpected negative impact can result from reduced food supplies. For example, in Latin America civil unrest almost developed when the production in ethanol threatened to cause food shortages. Because of this, ethanol production was slowed down. This is not to say increased production of ethanol will always cause food shortages because a process can always be set in motion to correct any potential hazards.
Ultimately, the future of hybrid cars will be based on marketplace demand. In other words, if there is adequate demand in the market place for increased production of hybrid cars and these cars sell and continue to sell strong, then the future of hybrid cars will be strong. Of course, there will always be a number of factors that will contribute to the success or failure of hybrid cars in the marketplace. One of the factors will be cost. This includes the cost of the car itself and the fuel costs associated with the car. At present, a hybrid car would save people a great deal of money in both those areas so this is a huge positive for the potential of the cars. The other area that will contribute to the success or failure of hybrid cars is sales and promotions. In other words, a solid advertising campaign would need to be set in place in order to stimulate public interest in the cars. Considering the skill of many ad companies, this should not be a problem and the future of these cars will look bright.
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Ethanol Still - Discover How to Make an Ethanol Still
People have been making ethanol for centuries in ethanol stills that they constructed out of what they had. The ethanol that we know today was actually created way back in 1796 by filtering distilled ethanol through charcoal. Johann Tobias Lowitz discovered this process and if he knew what he would be doing for so many people two hundred years later, I bet he would be thrilled. Actually he probably would have celebrated by drinking a little of his creation after it went through his ethanol still. Ethanol, or ethyl alcohol, has been made in backyard ethanol stills for decades. But it had a different name then. Then it was referred to as moonshine, or by some, white lightening. Moonshine was illegal in the days of prohibition but that didn't stop those who loved their brew. They would make an ethanol still and hide it in the woods so that it wouldn't be discovered. Some were lucky and never got caught while others had to face jail time. Men of all ages would make moonshine runs with cars that had to be fast so that they could outrun the law if need be. How times have changed. And people always said that you could run a car on moonshine, I just thought they were joking. Who's laughing now?
An ethanol still is a very important part in the making of ethanol. In days gone by people would put together any type of contraption they could so that they could make their homemade ethanol. Now ethanol stills have been perfected so that they do just what is needed. There is still some disagreements as to which material is better to use. A lot of people prefer to use copper for the ability it has to heat evenly all over. Others like to use stainless steel for its corrosion resistance with each party assured that their way is the best. A lot of commercial stills are made out of copper as they want the uniform heating ability that is necessary to make it the same each and every time.
The ethanol still is necessary to heat the corn mash mixture but once its job is complete the mixture will then be transferred to a fermenter that will allow the mash to ferment. This is the place that the ethanol is made. Fermentation is necessary for proper ethanol production.
Having an ethanol still is going to be something that more and more people will see necessary. Many are starting to feel the crunch of the high gas prices and soon will have to do something different in order to live like they have been accustomed to.
Allen Walker is a hard working american man who decided to do something about the high costs of gasoline that was affecting his life and family. He constructed his own ethanol still and now manufactures his own fuel from his backyard. You too can save money on gas by visiting his website http://www.ethanol-earth.com\">www.ethanol-earth.com" target="_blank">www.ethanol-earth.com">http://www.ethanol-earth.com\">www.ethanol-earth.com to learn how to make ethanol fuel.
Home Ethanol Production And What Is Involved
The words home ethanol production is creating a buzz all of the USA, because of fears of fuel shortages and price increases, plus global warming and pollution, people are getting more interested in home ethanol production. One thing to take into consideration with the production of ethanol, is safety, so it would be a good idea to get as much information as you can before starting. If your intention is to run your car on it you will probably need to check ethanol conversion kits. Relating to
Home Ethanol Production:
Home ethanol production is considered essential a major deal in the renewable energy debate, and in regards to the issue of homespun ethanol production, there are some facts that should really be known relative to an acre of US corn yielding approximately 7,100 pounds of grain for processing into 328 gallons of ethanol; the energy economics get worse at the processing plants, where the grain is crushed and fermented, as many as three distillation steps are needed in order to separate the 8% ethanol from the 92% water. When adding up the energy costs of grain production and its following conversion to ethanol, it has been found that 131,000 BTUs are needed in order to be able to make just 1 gallon of ethanol; one gallon of ethanol only has an energy value of 77,000 BTU, which is considered as being clearly not good.
Possible negatives with ethanol production:
Figures show that US grain production today erodes the top soil about 12 times faster than it can be reformed or replaced, with irrigated grain using groundwater 25% quicker than it can be naturally be replaced by rain etc. If you add to these figures that corn ethanol costs approximately $1.74 a gallon to produced, in comparison to the 94 cents per gallon that gasoline costs, its clear that more investigation is required before committing more and more remorses to ethanol production.
Therefore, there are so many questions with regards to the production of ethanol and the environment and with regards to life in general, as to whether or not ethanol is the proper choice as renewable energy source; there are actually so many positive factors that stem from it, and yet many negative ones as well, and so this is a matter which is almost certainly going to take some serious time and consideration to accurately figure out. However, there are some top-notch brilliant people in the world who are looking closely into the ethanol situation at this moment, this will also include home ethanol production, and so we can rest assured in knowing that the problem will be taken care of properly.
EcoHolistic.com for articles and tips about environmental and holistic issues.
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http://www.ecoholistic.com/ethanol/ethanol-fuel/home-ethanol-production.html
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Is it Possible to Build a Cellulose Ethanol Plant Using Hemp?
Not long ago, a gentleman noted that hemp would be an excellent source for an ethanol plant. If it could be grown in large quantities and harvested, then it could assist the US in her addiction to Middle Eastern Oil. The man who came up with this scheme from Santa Barbara, CA stated:
My Dream is to Build a Hemp Ethanol Plant"
Indeed, hemp is extremely high in cellulose, perhaps four or five times higher than what they are using now. It might be nice to use the sage brush along the coastal mountain range where you are, by harvesting some of it, you could prevent fires, if you did not take too much you would hurt the erosion problems there. Hemp makes sense of course but in Santa Barbara there is a water situation too, so it might be tough to build a plant there.
Ethanol Plants use lots of water at ratios of 8:1 or 8 gallons of water for one gallon of Ethanol in the refining process. This does not include growing the crop itself, however in the case of Hemp, it can grow in the wild like the "Switch Grass" scheme that a University in Texas came up with not long ago.
Therefore the Online Think Tank asked the individual;
- Do you have any preliminary studies, information, drawings of the plant design?
- Do you have investors, backing, supporters for this concept?
Using the highest cellulose plants to make cellulose ethanol makes the most sense and for those plants that grow in the wild, helping them along a little bit, means we are not sacrificing farm land for food in trade for fuel. So, perhaps it is worthy of more inquiry?
"Lance Winslow" - Online Blog Content Service. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/. Lance Winslow's Bio
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Can we Fly an Aircraft on Ethanol?!
Ethanol has been available for nearly a century. But we are now finding ways to use it for more things and to help us on our reliance on foreign oil. Baylor University has done numerous tests on ethanol in acrobatic general aviation aircraft as well as passenger high and low performance aircraft.
The Bellanca Decathlon a symmetrical winged Citabria for aerobatics was tested with 100% hydrous ethanol, which was gotten from an M & M Mars Candy Manufacturing plant. Ethanol was thought to be dangerous when it was 10-15% mixed with water due to the condensation aspects of water in aircraft engines another good reason for preflight inspections.
It was found that with a 100% hydrous ethanol there was no de
Ethanol also increased the TBO, total time to recommended or predicted overhaul by 50% meaning less wear on the engine, probably due to less knock. The FAA certified the IO-540 a very popular general aviation engine in March of 1990. So much of this is nothing new. The FAA even stating that it exceeded the tests. Aviation fuel is the last fuel available with lead in it. This has taken some 22 years to develop and now it appears aircraft with piston engines can use ethanol and perform better in many instances. This is especially good for those states, which grow corn such as Nebraska, ND, SD, Iowa and others.
The push for this type of fuel is coming predominantly from the areas in the US where corn grows which elevates the price of corn for farmers. Corn, a commodity can also be used to eat obviously and of course like oil can be used to make plastics and other important materials for a myriad of uses. Next time you think of corn, think of more than just food. The Navajo Indians made it into food by pounding the crap out of it, they were on to something there. Corn is a big deal to many states where it can be grown in abundance.
It appears that if ethanol provides better performance in hotter climates then perhaps we may wish to sell ethanol for aircraft in those markets unless the pilots will fly much above 12,000 feet where the air is cooler. The average of 2 degrees per thousand feet decrease in ambient temperature, flying over mountains could be an issue. But these are most interesting facts for military vehicles in the middle east, cars in hot climates and of course for aviation also.
If you have any ideas on alternative fuel for aircraft please let's explore and discuss these issues.
"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/
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Is Ethanol The Alternative Fuel?
Industrial alcohol produced from sugarcane molasses has a significant role to play in the world's economy. Alcohol is a by-product of sugar industry which is linked to agriculture. Sugarcane crop is a renewable source of energy. Therefore alcohol produced from molasses deserves a preferential place as a substitute feed stock for chemicals industry to bridge the gap in any country’s energy needs for increasing requirement for potable purpose. Sugarcane can also be directly used to produce ethanol.
Alcohol Based Chemicals
Ethyl Alcohol is an important feed stock for the manufacture of chemicals. These chemicals are Acetic Acid, Acetone, Butanol, Butadiene, Acetic Anhydride, Vinyl acetate, styrene, MEG PVC etc. Synthetic rubber industry also requires large quantity Of Alcohol. The main product INDUSTRIAL ALCOHOL is used in the manufacturing of the following Alcohol based chemicals, the uses of which are also given below.
a) Acetaldehyde : Can be used for industrial use as Chemicals derivatives Pharmaceutical applications and synthetic resins and for manufacture of Acetic Acid.
b) Acetic Acid : Used in Pharmaceuticals applications, Textiles, Dyestuffs, Ethyl Acetate, and is the basic chemical for Alcohol based chemicals via Acetaldehyde route...
c) Acetic Anhydride : Used in Bulk Drug manufacturing
d) Ethyl Acetate : Used in manufacturing of Paints, Dyestuffs and Pharmaceuticals .
e) Substitute to : Used in manufacture of HDPE, LDPE etc. and Chemicals other Petroleum based petroleum based chemicals such as Ethylene Glycol.
Potable Alcohol
Manufacture of alcoholic beverages from alcohol is also an attractive diversification. There is large demand for alcoholic beverages i.e. Brandy, Whisky, Rum, gin , Vodka and Wine. The need for alcohol for potable purpose is as high as the alcohol being used for industrial purposes.
Alcohol as fuel/Ethanol Blended petrol
The trend in the world (particularly Brazil and USA) is towards the use of alcohol as an alternative fuel. During World war II, alcohol in the form of power alcohol was used for blending with petrol in the proportion of 80% petrol and 20% power alcohol. Brazil has developed a technology which has made possible large scale substitution of petroleum derived fuel. Now Anhydrous Alcohol is exclusive fuel for automobiles. Alcohol powered vehicles have taken the first position in Brazil & accounting for 80% of overall sales of about 500,000 alcohol powered vehicles every year.
Anhydrous Alcohol (99.5% v/v) is being used as fuelPsychology Articles, by mixing it with Petrol. The blend of Anhydrous Alcohol and petrol is called Gasohol. In Brazil 4 million Vehicles are running on Gasohol. The content of alcohol in Gasohol varies from 10% to 85%. Alcohol works as Oxygenate in petrol combustion and superior to other oxygenate MTBE and ETBE. Alcohol reduces CO (Carbon Monoxide) emission and cause less pollution compared to petrol.
It can be seen that demand for alcohol will be ever increasing & there would not be any problem in marketing alcohol (either for Industrial or for potable purpose ) produced by distilleries.
It is debatable whether corn should be used for producing ethanol or for that matter any food grain.
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Coy about Corn Commodities
Corn grown in the USA has traditionally been used to feed livestock or has been converted into corn syrup and used as a sweetener. No longer solely for eating, corn is increasingly being used in the production of ethanol and it is now considered an "energy commodity."
The price of corn commodities rallied earlier this year, due to many bullish factors. One of the most significant factors is the fact that the global dependence on energy from fossil fuels is continually being challenged. Geopolitical risks in oil-producing countries, conflicting estimates on the sizes of oil reserves, the environmental movement and the farm lobby in the United States have put biofuels in the spotlight-benefiting the grain commodity markets.
Whether you agree with the economics of corn-based ethanol or not, production capacity is being expanded in the United States. Ethanol is heavily promoted by the powerful farm lobby, and is now subsidized by the US Congress. The 2008 re-election campaign figures into this equation heavily as this lobby group represents significant votes in the US.
The growing demand for agricultural commodities, including corn, in the coming years will create an upward pressure on corn prices. In response, farmers this spring have planted the largest corn crop in the US since World War II. This phenomenon has depressed corn prices through much of the spring, as a bumper crop on this much acreage was thought by many traders to be more than enough to meet the "feed and fuel" demand.
The grain markets were very volatile over the recent growing season. As traders try to determine farmers' planting intentions for the coming season, prices could remain jumpy. A further decline in the US Dollar could also inflate prices, as US grains will be less expensive to customers around the world.
Long-term threats to corn prices do exist, despite the increase of demand due to the production of ethanol. Should food inflation get any worse, the cries of consumers may gain the ear of politicians now in the farm lobby's pocket. Subsidies for the ethanol industry could be cut in the future. In addition, tariffs currently preventing sugar or cheaper Brazilian ethanol from entering American markets could be lowered or removed altogether. Many experts agree that sugar-based ethanol is cheaper and more efficient than its corn-based counterpart. Finally, biomass ethanol technology could be perfected, allowing cheaper ethanol production from corn stalks, switch grass or organic waste.
These factors however do not threaten corn in the near-term and in the short-term even a bumper crop will only depress prices so far. Corn commodities may be one drought away from another bull run and remains an interesting commodity to watch over the next few months. Look out for good trading opportunities that may develop for this commodity in the future.
The data and comments provided above are for information purposes only and must not be construed as an indication or guarantee of any kind of what the future performance of the concerned markets will be. While the information in this publication cannot be guaranteed, it was obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Futures and Forex trading involves a substantial risk of loss and is not suitable for all investors. Please carefully consider your financial condition prior to making any investments. MF Global Canada Co. is a member of the CIPF.
About the Author: Jesse Greenwald is an account executive at the Saskatoon office of MF Global. He focuses much of his analysis on the grain and energy commodity markets. In addition, Jesse watches the forex futures, livestock commodities and soft commodities such as sugar, cotton and coffee.
Making ethanol work! - watch this video
This video shows the places where ethanol work! - Brazil ans Sweden.
The movie present the advantages of ethanol to developing countries, and to the world.
Great movie.
Bio-Ethanol - a scum?
This video suggest that the all ethanol idea is just a scum! but is it?
Well - although ethanol have many problems, it still hold a great premise to the green energy future. The two main problems: mass production and transporting ethanol, ther are going to be technology development that will solve these problems.
Flex-Fuel Vehicles: is E85 Ethanol Based Fuel the First Step to Beating “Oil Addiction”?
During the State of the Union Address on January 31,2006 President George W. Bush presented a plan to the people of the United States and to the U.S. Congress to replace more than 75 percent of our oil imports from the Middle East by 2025.He spoke of hybrid cars, hydrogen based fuel cell cars and the expansion of ethanol fueled vehicles. The ethanol-based technology is already here, there are already somewhere in the neighborhood of 5 million Flexible Fuel Vehicles (FFV) already on the road in the USA.FFV can run on regular unleaded gasoline or a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent regular unleaded gasoline (known as E85) or any percentage of ethanol and gasoline blend in between.
The expansion of FFV is, in my opinion, an opportunity for General Motors and Ford to step forward and show the American people that they can compete by building vehicles that are friendlier to the environment and not dependent on products imported to us from the politically volatile Middle East.
Ford showed off an ethanol-hybrid SUV this past January at the Washington, D.C. auto show, as reported by USA Today writer James R. Healy. This E85-burning hybrid Ford Escape is part of “a development program, not a research program”, according to Ford Executive Vice President Anne Stevens. This means that the American consumer will find these vehicles in showrooms sooner rather than later.
USA Today writer James R. Healy did a cover story on Thursday February 2,2006 highlighting the message from the States of the Union Address indicating that E85 is not the answer because among other things the infrastructure is not in place, except for the Midwest, and, if you do not own one of the 5 million FFV currently on the road you would need to buy a new car that can use E85. I understand these very valid points but I also must say that it is February 2006 as I write this article and 2025 is still 19 years away. The technology is here; we just need to get on board with the new technology now in order to cut the dependency on foreign oil imports in the future.
In his USA Today feature article Mr. Healy noted that Ford CEO Bill Ford states his company will boost FFV production 25% this year to 250,000. Also noted was that General Motors has pledged to build more than 400,000 FFV annually, starting this year. Noting that a barrel of oil is saved for every 37 gallons of E85 that is used.
Mr. Healy’s feature article raised an interesting point: most cars on the road today in the USA require no modifications at all to run on Gasohol, which is a blend of 90 percent gasoline and 10 percent ethanol. By taking the first step of using the 10 percent ethanol blend we, as the American driving public, can accomplish a couple of things. First we can help the environment by burning a cleaner fuel in our current cars. Second we can give the automakers the acknowledgement that the American consumer is serious about alternative renewable fuel. This perhaps would spur other manufacturers to join General Motors and Ford in offering expanded choices in the FFV line-up. Third this would give production facilities time to tool up as well as a ready and willing market to expand into. Fourth this should help American farmers by boosting the price of corn that is widely used in ethanol production. Fifth this would also give more fuel stations the time to begin making the necessary additions to their storage facilities to accommodate E85 fuel. This will not happen over night but instead slowly over time. The next time you are in the market for a new vehicle a FFV may be a viable choice for you.
The manufacturers will build the vehicles that are demanded by the public. If you feel that an E85 fuel vehicle may fit your needs the next time you purchase a vehicle do your research and do what is right for you. Remember that the flexibility of an E85 fueled vehicle does not restrict your travel to only areas that have E85, because it will also run on regular unleaded fuel. To get additional information you can visit www.e85fuel.com for the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition.
About The Author
Dana Buttenhoff has over 20 years experience in the automotive industry. The past 12 years as an automotive service consultant for a European luxury car dealership in suburban Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Ethanol - Its Significance In The Stock Market Investing Realm
In the bid for the world's search for alternative sources of energy as time is currently running out given the current scarcity of crude oil, there have been numerous initiatives by companies to develop the potential of different alternatives to crude oil such as natural gas and ethanol.
Ethanol is a colorless, clear liquid with an agreeable odor. This is the natural component of ethyl alcohol. Corn, wheat, potatoes and other plants can produce starch that is made into ethanol by the process of fermentation. It can be used as fuel by mixing it with the regular gasoline and this becomes gasohol.
These sources of alternative fuels are currently one of the faces of future technologies that are being developed and researched on by many technology energy companies listed in the stock market. These technology companies have been popular picks of long-term technology savvy investors for more than 5 years.
The potential of ethanol has been the focus of a lot of technology companies in stock exchanges most commonly those listed in the NASDAQ stock exchange. The popularity of this resource as a future alternative to fossil fuels has been recognized in the stock market and numerous initiatives for research and development to make this a renewable source of energy has been ongoing for quite some time.
Although investment performance returns from these alternative energy companies may not yet be as competitive as the established companies that are currently in the business of the popular fossil fuels, the technology for these alternative fuel companies may still be a long way of waiting as the issue of having the necessary infrastructure to produce and distribute alternative sources of fuel like ethanol will take quite some time.
Investors that are optimistic on the future of these alternative energy companies believe that the technology will still require longer waiting. Aside from the waiting of new discoveries, the infrastructure and distribution of energy products produced from alternative energy sources like ethanol will still be more costly.
It will also not necessarily be competitive at its initial stages of introduction to the stock market investors as compared to the established production and distribution processes of companies producing fossil fuel energy products.
While the wait for the availability of alternative energy sources to the public may still be long and initially costly, the world will still have to push forward the developments of alternative energy sources as the world reserves of fossil fuels are already depleting and sooner or later the alternative sources of energy will have to be much more of a priority not only of companies engaged in its development but also of the general public as well.
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Ethanol In Brazil: Is it the New Global Energy Brand?
When it comes to energy, Brazil is on its way to becoming a "global brand." Although the United States recently outpaced Brazil in ethanol production, Brazil is by far the leader in sugar-based ethanol. Its exports are growing, and it could become a major energy supplier to the world. But what Brazil is particularly known for is its grand conversion-moving almost 40 percent of its automotive fuel from gasoline to ethanol.
Ethanol in Brazil is used in two ways: either blended, in a mix of 75 percent gasoline and 25 percent ethanol, or as pure ethanol pumped directly into a car's fuel tank. On any given day, motorists across Brazil can stand in front of a pump and decide, based on price, whether they want to put ethanol or gasoline into their "flex fuel" car engine or whether they want to blend them.
Brazil has now achieved energy self-sufficiency. Ethanol is a part of the explanation, but it would be an error to think that it is the only one. There has been great success from drilling in Brazil's offshore waters, and domestic oil output has increased by 40 percent since 2000-from 1.2 million barrels per day (mbd) to 1.7 mbd in 2006. This 500,000 barrel per day increase compares to 240,000 barrels per day of ethanol consumption.
How did ethanol achieve its prominent role in Brazil? It has been made possible by a series of factors: strong government support, especially after the 1973 oil shock; continual adoption of new technologies over more than a quarter century; and the cheapest production costs in the world.
The Brazilian government made a strong commitment to ethanol in the mid-1970s, in response to the first oil crisis. At that time, Brazil was importing more than 80 percent of its oil. The first oil shock had a highly detrimental effect on Brazil's economy, influencing a significant drop in the country's GDP growth, from almost 14 percent in 1973 to five percent in 1975. A program to stimulate domestic production of ethanol as a transport fuel was embraced as the way to reduce the country's exposure to the world oil market.
This Brazilian effort began in 1975. It was championed as the Pro-Alcohol Program, since ethanol is known as alcohol in Brazil. The program consisted of both public and heavily subsidized private investment in ethanol production, together with governmental mandates to blend the fuel with gasoline and incentives to stimulate the sales of cars that ran on pure ethanol.
With government incentives, pure ethanol vehicles comprised 95 percent per cent of domestic auto production in 1984. By 1988, Brazil was consuming 1.7 gallons of ethanol for each gallon of gasoline.
In the mid-1980s, however, ethanol got caught in a vise. Oil prices fell sharply and, at the same time, international sugar prices rose. Ethanol was no longer as attractive as it had been for Brazilian producers and motorists.
By the end of the 1980s, a sharp fall in ethanol production, together with a prevalence of pure ethanol vehicles, led to a shortage, enraging motorists and damaging the credibility of Brazil's ethanol industry. As consequence, ethanol cars fell from 92 percent of total vehicle sales in 1985 to less than 20 percent in 1990. At the end of the 1990s, ethanol production was back to same level that it had been in the mid-1980s. Today, almost no pure alcohol vehicles are being produced, in large part because of an innovation that has recently helped ethanol enjoy a new boom in Brazil. This is the "flex-fuel vehicle."
The flexible fuel vehicle is a simple technological innovation that has dramatically enhanced the attractiveness of ethanol in Brazil by giving consumers choice of the fuel they can use in their cars.
After 2000, stimulated by rising oil prices and a new initiative by the government to encourage consumption of renewable fuels, the Brazilian automotive industry began to produce vehicles that could run on either ethanol or gasoline in any proportion. The previous experience with the Pro-Alcohol Program had left behind a strongly developed ethanol infrastructure, with more than 90 percent of the country's filling stations capable of offering the fuel in its pure form.
Thanks to competitive pricing for the vehicles and for ethanol, flex-fuel vehicles have been widely adopted in Brazil. They represented 80 percent of all light cars sales in 2006, a number even more impressive considering that they only started to be marketed by the end of 2003.
Today, many Brazilian motorists make their fuel choice based on the relative price of gasoline and ethanol. And ethanol is able to compete without any subsidies against gasoline. This partly is because the government taxes gasoline at a higher rate-the gasoline tax burden is 45 percent of the final price, while the tax on ethanol is only 28 percent. But the main reason behind ethanol's competitiveness is that Brazil's sugar-based ethanol has the lowest production costs in the world-estimated at $1.10 per gallon.
Good weather and high land quality are certainly important factors in keeping down the costs of ethanol in Brazil, but they are not the only ones. Sugarcane has been grown in the country since the Portuguese colonization in the early 16th century, and industrial production of ethanol as a fuel goes back to the 1930s.
The 70-year old ethanol industry has invested heavily in new technologies and processes, and biotechnology is now employed to improve the quality and productivity of the sugarcane species. Integration of ethanol production with sugarcane processing has led to significant gains in efficiency and scale. For example, the cane fiber (called bagasse) is burned to generate electricity, which powers the sugar and ethanol production plant, with surplus power sold to the central grid.
The oil input in Brazilian's ethanol production is minimal, restricted to the transporting of the sugarcane to the processing plant and moving ethanol from there to filling stations. The combination of these advantages provides Brazilian ethanol with a comfortable competitive position against oil.
The success of Brazil's domestic industry poses an important question: Can Brazil go global with its ethanol? Brazil is already the largest ethanol exporter in the world, shipping 20 percent of it annual production abroad.
International demand for ethanol is expected to keep growing in the years to come. The main ethanol consumers outside Brazil are the United States and Europe, which are seeking to increase their domestic sources of ethanol supply. But, at least with current technology, their prospects are constrained.
High volume ethanol exports from Brazil to both the U.S. and Europe are also currently impeded by import duties, though some believe that growing demand for bio-fuels could lead to loosening of these barriers. But what happens to those barriers will be highly political, both in terms of domestic politics and trade negotiations.
If trade barriers fall, Brazil's industry has much room to grow. Even excluding the rain forest and other protected areas, Brazil still has large areas that could be used to grow cane. Only two percent of the country's total endowment of arable land-and ten percent of currently cultivated land-are now under sugarcane cultivation with half of that dedicated to ethanol production.
Advances in bio-technology have substantially enhanced plant types, improving their ability to thrive in a wider range of soils and climates. All this means that there is potential to expand Brazil's ethanol production substantially and make it a major global energy supplier.
Furthermore, expansion of ethanol production in Brazil is unlikely to create the kind of food versus fuel conflicts that can be expected in other developing countries with agricultural potential.
How large a role Brazil will play in global markets will depend on many factors-the ability of the Brazilian industry to expand; the nature of fuel mandates and domestic industries of the large industrial countries; and international trade rules. Brazil's ethanol industry will continue to play a large role in meeting Brazil's domestic energy needs. It also has the potential to grow beyond the domestic market and to create large scale exports-and definitely make Brazil an energy brand around the world.
Daniel Yergin, chairman of CERA, received the Pulitzer Prize for "The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money & Power" and the United States Energy Award for lifelong achievements in energy and the promotion of international understanding. Vist CERA at cera.ecnext.com.
read this! - Unique Fuel Conversion System For Ethanol Power Cars
It is a product of sugar metabolism in certain species of yeast in the absence of oxygen. The process of culturing yeast under conditions to produce alcohol is referred to as brewing. Yeasts can grow in the presence of up to only about 14% alcohol, but the concentration of alcohol in the final product can be increased by distillation.
Ethanol contains oxygen that provides a cleaner and more efficient burn of the fuel. When used in ethanol power cars, it reduces carbon dioxide, a major contributor to global warming. Although burning ethanol still releases carbon dioxide during production and combustion.
The use of ethanol blended fuel is very popular in the United States. One of the most popular is e85 fuel a mixture of conventional gasoline and ethanol. The result is a much cleaner burning fuel that is just as efficient as standard fuels. This mixture is optimized for a combination of clean exhaust and efficiency and will function properly in almost any non-diesel car or truck.
So, what is ethanol? Ethanol is ethyl alcohol which needs to be 100% pure. Ethanol is the highest performance fuel on the market and keeps today's high-compression engines running smoothly. Ethanol-blended fuel (such as e85) keeps your fuel system clean, cause it does not leave gummy exhausts.
And because ethanol burns cleaner, it produces fewer emissions. Today, all ethanol cars manufacturers approve the use of ethanol blended fuels and even recommend to use ethanol for its positive environmental impacts.
The use of an ethanol will allow to increase the performance of ethanol cars in general. Initial tests showed that ethanol may also extend from 20 to 80% the engine's maintenance. The conversion of existing engines is not only feasible, but also cost effective.
One of the most convenient ethanol-gasoline mixtures is called e85 and consists of 85% ethanol to 15% gasoline. Ethanol fueled cars are specially designed to run well as on the mixture of ethanol to gas as on alcohol fuel, moreover, they are able to detect the specific ratio of ethanol to gas and adjust themselves accordingly to run as efficiently as possible. Ethanol cars that run on ethanol can also run on regular gas, too, that's how flexible they really are!
Using flex-fuel converter system AutoFFV, will allow you to refuel your ethanol cars with alcohol, gasoline or a mixture of both E85.
From now you don't need to use only gasoline to run your car as there are a lot of different alternative fuels. The choice of alternative fuel sources is larger today than it has ever been before. Take advantage of flex-fuel conversion system and run your ethanol cars on economic alcohol or ethanol fuels instead of traditional gasoline
Vidar Lura write articles about to operate with ethanol-based fuels, which reduces our dependency as a nation on foreign oil, improves our environment. More info visit website http://www.abcesso.com
Ethanol Distillation Facts
People started understanding that in time the yearly spending on fuel is going to grow to a monster like sum and that it would be nice to cut down these prices as soon as possible, some business saw this trend getting stronger and stronger. Today thee are a lot of solutions for alternative fuel use and production, most of the kits and solution found on the market are definitely working, safe and cut an incredible cost of fuel consumption.
This move to alternative fuel has got some big businesses thinking and suddenly we get a lot of advertisement for self making ethanol and ethanol distillation at home to sell to ethanol users. Since ethanol use is actually being promoted by official the production of the ethanol and ethanol distillation for the public may prove a little more complicated than the privet manufacturing and selling of ethanol, you have to remember that these are still dangerous materials you are working with and that bigger production will ultimately result in bigger machines and much more of these materials use.
There is no wonder that some fear that individuals will experiment with ethanol distillation, imagine someone storing gallons of dangerous explosive materials on their property and the unprofessional way of dealing with these materials. The quality of the final product is also in question, with no formal body governing and regulating the quality this may prove a dangerous product to use, and certainly to try and manipulate. The individual trying to produce ethanol will also need to go through the American Society of Testing and Materials that will show they way to make the right kind of product safely and how to use and keep the materials involved in the proper and safe way.
The self manufacturing and production of ethanol and the process of making ethanol from an ethanol distillation is not something a reasonable person will do, it involves getting permits and going through many check and regulation testing that it is simply not worth the time and effort by an individual, the making of ethanol will eventually result in some find of problem that will probably leave a very bad taste in the mouth of the person who gave this a shot.
For the individual this is a true revolution in the fuel market, you can just get a kit, study the making or buying ethanol basics and you will soon be a part of this revolution, you will probably discover that it is very possible to cut the raging fuel costs and spend it on nicer things, and that in a short time you will be completely independent of gas stations and gas use. The idea of making this a home business is not a very smart move, the licenses and taxes, permits and checks of your distillation station alone leaves you with a low chance of actually making it as an individual.
In any case a person considering to go into the ethanol distillation business would do good to first try and live with ethanol in the first place, so join the alternative fuel revolution and start using ethanol today.
