EPA is asked to postpone ethanol determination



Dependence on foreign oil is a hot topic, however it's not a new one. Each president since Jimmy Carter has said something about yet. A novel idea was brought up, which was to power vehicles with ethanol rather than gasoline. Over the last few years, gas suppliers have been mixing gasoline and ethanol, in a solution called E10, or 10 percent ethanol. Currently, the EPA is thinking about whether to approve use of E15 for late or older models. Auto firms are urging the Environmental Protection Agency to hold back until enough evidence has been compiled.

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EPA and E15



The EPA has the oversight on approving new fuels. Right now, it is weighing the merits of E15. E15 is the next step up from the already widely sold E10. It has a mixture of 15 percent ethanol to 85 percent gasoline. The Department of Energy is testing the effects of E15 on cars that are no older than 10 years, according to Popular Mechanics. However, about 88 percent of all vehicles within the United States of America in use are 10 years old or older. The EPA has been lobbied by the Auto Alliance not to make a decision just yet. The effects on older cars from E15 should be known before being given approval. At least one study, by engineering group Ricardo, Inc., found that E15 has no harmful effects on vehicles older than 10 years.


Drinking and driving now has a whole other significance



<p> Ethanol, also known as ethyl alcohol or more colorfully as moonshine, is a distillation of alcohol from grain. The liquid certainly can be used as a gasoline. It is combustible, or rather it contains lots of energy. That said, ethanol has 34 percent less energy per unit of volume than gasoline, according to Wikipedia. As result, an ethanol-only engine uses 50 percent more fuel than a gasoline engine. However, this can be countered with just a little tinkering. Adjusting the compression can make ethanol vehicles more powerful, and thus achieve parity with gas. Even with a larger engine at higher compression, ethanol fueled cars cannot get better mileage than gas engines.

Other ramifications



Use of ethanol isn't likely to be totally curtailed. Grain has been a gas crop for a while, and will continue. Grain can't supplant gas as a fuel entirely, as the price of food grain will skyrocket should ethanol be used as a complete replacement. Cheap and abundant grain can't be discounted, as that is the very thing which made, and nevertheless makes, civilization itself possible.

Further reading

Popular Mechanics



popularmechanics.com/cars/alternative-fuel/biofuels/renewable-fuels-association-urges-epa-to-approve-e15-for-older-vehicles?click=pm_news

Wikipedia



en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel