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Ethanol’s Octane Provides Proactive Opportunity

By Brian Jennings | January 11, 2012

  Over the past 25 years, the American Coalition for Ethanol has recognized the need to be nimble and adapt tactics in pursuit of our mission to make American ethanol the consumer fuel of choice.

In 1987, our initial emphasis was to educate legislators in a few core states and sponsor ethanol-fueled dirt track races to familiarize mechanics and gas station owners with ethanol’s high-octane performance. Those efforts soon expanded to provide desperately needed policy leadership at the federal level and to educate petroleum marketers nationwide about the benefits and blending economics of ethanol. Indeed, ACE took the initiative to be the first group to support enactment of a renewable fuels standard (RFS) in Congress and to sponsor studies on midlevel ethanol blends such as E30 which led to blender pump promotion.

In 2012, much of our focus will pivot to states to help ensure the remaining hurdles to E15 use are cleared. This will involve working with other groups to change laws and regulations at the state level and proactively promoting the benefits of E15 for consumers and petroleum marketers. We can and will apply the lessons we learned from the expansion of E10 use in the states to help make the transition to E15.

Congressional gridlock prevented the enactment of ethanol legislation last year, but that doesn’t mean federal energy policy stood still. To the contrary, President Obama rode herd over two landmark energy policy changes in 2011, rules controlling emissions from coal-fired power plants and proposed aggressive new fuel economy standards (corporate average fuel economy, or CAFE rules) for automobiles.

Given the ongoing partisan bickering and legislative logjam in Congress, which will likely worsen in this presidential election year, ACE will play an active role in the CAFE and other key federal rulemakings in 2012.

The new CAFE standards apply to light-duty vehicles beginning in model year 2017, requiring a nationwide average of 54.5 miles per gallon by model year 2025. While the automakers agreed to this overall fuel savings goal in negotiations with the Obama administration, it will nevertheless be very challenging for them to meet. In fact, unless refiners are compelled to clean up their fuel in tandem with new CAFE rules, automakers, at no fault of their own, will be unable to meet the new fuel economy standards and keep the air we breathe clean and safe. The reason is aromatics, which are classified as hazardous air pollutants.

This is where ethanol enters the picture, as the cleanest and most affordable form of octane on the planet. A coalition of public health and consumer groups that care about the environment and ACE will make the case in rulemakings this year that if ethanol’s clean octane is allowed to replace the toxic, expensive, and energy-inefficient aromatics (benzene, toluene, xylene) that refiners use to add octane to fuel, the resulting benefits will be substantial—reduced oil use, cleaner and safer air, and more demand for American-made ethanol. 

Replacing benzene, toluene and xylene in transportation fuel with ethanol’s clean octane would be analogous to getting the lead out of gasoline and would set up the predicate for how we can someday fulfill a goal many in the industry have for widespread use of E30 or similar midlevel blends.

That is not to say we’re ignoring Capitol Hill. Indeed, as we’ve indicated numerous times already, ACE and other groups will work together to protect the RFS in 2012 and address other legislative priorities.

In that spirit, I’ll close this month by encouraging everyone to participate in ACE’s upcoming grassroots fly-in to Washington, D.C., scheduled for March 27-28. I hope to see you in D.C. next month.


Author: Brian Jennings
Executive Vice President,
American Coalition for Ethanol
(605) 334-3381
bjennings@ethanol.org

 

2 Responses

  1. A.J. Landry

    2012-01-17

    1

    Mr Jennings: Why is it that you ethanol proponents never address the issue of much pooer fuel mileage in vehicles when promoting that ethanol displaces foreign crude into the US? I personally tested my 2008 Mercury Sable mileage from my home in Louisiana to north of Atlanta to visit my children and their families there. I fillup with ethanol FREE gas before I leave and drive to just past Auburn, AL before I have to fillup. I fillup there with ethanol gas since I cannot find ethanol free gas there. I drive into Atlanta, drive around town, and return and stop to fillup at the same Shell station with ethanol gas near Auburn to complete the trip. I drive the exact route going and return, and set my cruise control at 72 mph. I've made the exact trip 3 times and calculated my mileage each time. Over 3 trips, I averaged 7.5% LOWER gas mileage with ethanol gas. Around town I get 10-12% lower mileage. Then, there is also the problem that ethanol gas presents to marine engines and lawn and garden tools. Small tool engines require CONSTANT repairs (this is from a repair shop down the street from my home - he's been doing small engine repairs for over 25 years. He tells me that the advent of ethanol gas, he's had to double his staff just to keep up with the workload, and still falls behind). Why do you never address this? Because of the pooer fuel mileage in vehicles, one has to fillup more often, so just how are we saving or reducing the import of crude oil? It seems that you "ethanol proponents" never address the bad side of ethanol gas. Also, even though EPA has approved "E-15" for 2001 and newer cars and light trucks, I know of at least 4 friends, including me, whose owners manuals for 2008 Mercury Sable, 2009 Ford F-150, 2006 Toyota Camry and a 2007 Nissan truck which all warn users "do not use gasoline with greater than 10% ethanol", or if you do, damages will not be covered by the warranty! Do you really believe users will follow EPA's midguided directive instead of their owners manual? Wake up! I am a retired Chemist and have been studying ethanol gasoline for several years. It is the "Biggest Hoax ever perpotrated on American Consumers"!

  2. donald

    2012-01-25

    2

    AJ LANDRY they got u hooked on petro too huh.Let me tell u something. Ive Studied ethanol probably longer than most i think its a good thing. I am a currently a working mechanical engineer for many years.Ethanol is a good thing for many reasons 1 it creates jobs here in the US since the jobs a scarce and hard to find its bringing in money that we need . We not giving money out for petro to other countries.The Problem u adress is not in the fuel its the ...ckin engines we have their ot very efficint when i did my graduate program at the university we talked bout this same propblem.See what happens is that a gas engine only has an efficiency of 60% to 65% thermal efficiency that rest of the fuel goes in the exhaust and in the air and pollute the air. Thats y we have propblems with co2 emissions. Years ago they had people out there that created vapor carboration cars which means that the gas is vapored before it goees into cylinder.if u vapor the fuel then mix with air ull get complete combustion and hardly have waste in the exhaust. Honda has a closed looped system wich closes the exhaust and loops it back into the system again no exhaust imamgine that. U ask what happen to the vapor carboration system by the way it was getting 200 miles to the gal which is documented it can do that. U can use any fuel especialy ethanol.Anyway they were patent but those individuals got greedy and the petro compannies Shell BP etc got mischeivious and bought all the patents so that no one could reproduce it and the car manufactures could not have a efficient car. So happens is we suffer at the pump and pay more for a shit efficient car. See the petro companies and the engine companies are all in cahoots with each other.ITs not the fuel the btus are less in ethanol like 76,00 btus but it has more octane reducing engine knock and runs cooler and less spark plug misfiring. the moral is u cant put something in a engine and expect it to run perfectly u have to fix the mechanics of the car first then try a new fuel. Yes it gets less miles currently if u fix the fuel injection issues by vaporing ull get complete combustion. In a current injection system the injectors blows fuels but it still liquid wont completely ignite especially if u have half ass spark plugs. thats the problem. the fuel companies and the car companies have to work together to make the fuel work better in cars. In small engines its the same issues it needs modificationns for it to work on boat engines etc.ethanol is a good fuel ure just dumping into our gas guzzling cars and expect it to work wont work right. its 10% less efficent curretly in ure Sable. We have to make the choice ethanol or eventually pay 5 PLUS bucks A GAL OF GAS.eTHANOL CAN REDUCE ARE DEPENDANCE BUT WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER AND HAVE A INFASTRUCTURE BUILT. THANK U ipop1287@Yahoo.com

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