mikeetay's Profile

Located in: Georgetown, TX

Current Status: (Offline)

Total Comments: 1

Both Sides: More ethanol in gasoline could do more harm than help
The article is full of silly concepts. Just a quote that corn-based ethanol is a terrible transportation fuel - but why, where does this come from and for who (refiners?). It is completely unsubstantiated comment that starts the subject of the ‘piece’ (which is an opinion piece not worth the electronic paper).

Switching to higher ethanol blends has been much easier to deploy in Brazil where we (US) are well behind the curve. Note that any change to the fuel is only a risk to auto-makers, so of course they will hedge their bets and state that they’d like to get out of their warranty commitments. When MTBE/reformulated gasoline came out this additive was also going to destroy engines and dissolve gaskets. It didn’t, ethanol doesn’t. Acidity is managed as a specification on ethanol production - so this is not a widely varying component - it is a product specification. It is measured and managed on every batch. The myth on ethanol/water separation and octane variation on blends is also an old wives tale that doesn’t reflect current gasoline tank design and conditions. If you are driving a ‘57 Chevy, when this alarm/scare was first published you may have a problem. Anyone else - ignore this one also. How often does your mechanic need to drain the water puddle in the bottom of your gasoline tank (oh that is never).
11/05/2009 1:27 PM

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