Ethanol not worth it?

[Dreman]

Apparently it takes more energy to make ethanol than you get back from it. Once the subsidies are gone ethanol may not be worth the price.

 

[Dan Otto]

We're Dead!

 

[Nelson Atwell]

If I lived in New Mexico I know where I could get some free biodiesel. My brother owns 15 KFC restaurants, and all that old cooking grease can be filtered and burned as fuel in any diesel powered vehicle.

 

[Fer Echegaray]

And we could probably smell the chiken from 2 miles down the road I guess.... :lol:

 

[Bill Ellis]

Here again are studies and the associated arguements be made by those with vested interest in the outcome. The ethanol lobby says it's good, the solar/wind lobby says it isn't. OK, where is the independent study conducted by someone who doesn't care about the outcome or how much of our money they will get in grants and tax deals?

 

[Taco Jackson]

Maybe E-85 is different, because from what I gather from posts here it's much cheaper than regular gas. But here in Iowa, I've never seen E-85, we have some 90 Octane gas that has an "Ethanol" sticker on it, so I dont know if's less ethanol or what. Either way, it costs about a nickel less than regular gas but the gas mileage is noticably poorer. Which means using it is silly, since the cost per mile is more than regular gas, and all it does is prop up farmers with huge government subsidies as opposed to forcing them to farm differently. Its a waste if you ask me, but no one person can likely know all the facts without having just as much bias.



What we really need are cars that run 100 mpg on a fuel made from politician corpses. Now that'd be a "win win" situation.

 

[Larry Phillips]

The 90 Octane gas with the Ethenol sticker is probably E-10.

 

[Cajun]

Taco

LOL ........I like your idea but can you imagine the smell !! You know that politicians are all full of crap !!! LOL

 

[Ryan Schaecher]

My father "sells" ethanol production plants and I've done reports on them as well. The "older" plants did indeed require more energy to produce than they made. THe new generation of plants however are more efficient. While not a great improvement, they are better.



As ethanol becomes a bigger player in energy, technology should help effiency improve. Ethanol has a lower MPG rating and the difference in cost (right now) keeps most people from using it. As petrolium prices rise, look to see ethanol stay relatively steady.



The larger plants (40 million gallon and larger) see greater effiencies due to changing marginal utility, that is it takes nearly the same energy to run a 40 million gallon plant as a 30 million gallon. A factor that the article (if not the study) overlooked.

 

[Aaron Laake 2]

Taco,

I have seen E85 pumps (the 85% ethanol gas) in the Des Moines and the Sioux City areas and both times it was about $1.55 a gallon, while regular gas was $2.30 a gallon. The one you are talking about, usually the mid grade 90 octane is only 10 - 15% ethanol. It is usually priced the same as regular. I have seen little difference in mileage when using the 10 - 15% ethanol.



The Hawk

 

[Bill V]

Taco--No, that idea would never work. It's all because of the costs involved in preparing the politicians for the fuel-making process. It's kind of like the old joke about the cannibal restaurant, where the sign said that plumber cost $4.95, construction worker cost $5.95, mail carrier cost $5.75, and politician cost $49.95. When the customer asked why the politician cost so much more, the server replied, "Are you kidding? Do you know how hard it is to CLEAN those things?"