Well thanks. If E85 is 85% ethanol, that actually somewhat reduces my concern for the effect on older vehicles of the pending switch to 15% ethanol.

Reading between the lines I thought the Ford writeup was pretty scary in its implications, but that was due to my misunderstanding that they were describing the effects of 15% ethanol, not 85%.

Sorry for the Chicken Little imitation, my bad!

 

So if you have an E85 Flex Fuel vehicle and you've used the E10 all along, you could dump in a bottle if Everclear or white lightening if you're in a bind out in the woods.

 

Yes it would work but that will raise the cost per mile over $1, and then what would you drink?

 

Absolutely no doubt about that. Its a way to subsidies farming more than anything. And I work for farmers now and have grown up around farms. Many of the ethanol plants in IL. n IA. are co-ops of farmers invested in those plants. (Gauranteed demand)

Corn is over $6 dollars right now. Can you say inflation in ever aspect of food. This is why countries in the east are in uprisings because the food cost have increased about 85% in the past months and many can't afford bread. So we and Europe are pushing for more tree hugger regulation..... makes alot of sense.

Having been on both sides in the fuel industry for ten years and in farming industry since I was 10(now 43). There is no real free market in the corn commodities. And with the stock market being mostly false due to our Gov. printing money into the market invester are moving into commodities which inflates those prices.

Ethanol is not bad. It just really doesn't compete with gas or diesel. We can produce clean burning engines that achieve great mileage and have. It just doesn't please a fraction of people(who have the media behind them) that are brainwashed into believing we are killing the planet which we couldn't do if we tried. God created this earth and proved he will take care of the big things. Like the Gulf oil spill that saw the emergence of a new life form that consumes the oil in the waters,in the Gulf just as it does throughout the oceans.

Sorry for the rant.

 

The thing you're all missing is that an oxygenate is REQUIRED in certain areas, and MTBE was used first. When MTBE was found to contaminate ground/drinking water, AND caused cancer, it was banned. The only thing left was Ethanol.

I'm not saying the "oxygenate required" was a good thing or not, but putting Ethanol in gas is more complicated than someone wanted to subsidize the corn farmers.

NOW - let's leave the politics, AND RELIGION out of this, or this thread gets closed.

 

MTBE was originally used because it didn't have the adverse affects to performance that the ethanol does. It maintained power,mileage and inhanced performance. It was primarily used first because the oil companies produced it. They wanted to used it because it is a by-product from the production of gas. Then when mandated in Cleveland(I believe) it made many people sick shortly after it was implimented. So it was banned. Now ethanol was the easist resource to replace it even though it lost mileage and power.

Ethanol is truly the same as food grade alcohol except that to "denature" it gas,butane,or CNG is added to keep people from trying to cunsume it. Most of the time it is only 1% of a " contaminate" to get it to denatured status.

Another issue with E85 is that because it is 85% ethanol that if a tank ruptures and cathes fire there is no visible flame, just like in fires at a race track that burn alcohol.Therefore are fire depts ready to incounter these type of fires if we start heading toward more ethanol based fuels?

 

No, that's not right. It is E85 not E90 or E100 because 15% gasoline makes the flames visible.

Race cars that run on alcohol run M100, which is 100% methanol.

 

Ok I forgot is was methanol, But I know in tankers they had to come up with a new hazard class because of this fire issue. It used to be placarded as gas(1203) and was changed because a firefighter could walk up to it not seeing flames(still heat o fcource) but not realize why no flame. I suppose 15% of gas would result in some color of flame.

 

That's the majority of the reason that ethanol motor fuel isn't available above E85.

 

That 15% gasoline in the E85 also helps to keep morons from drinking it.

 

Oof, or the "revenuers" from having a problem with it

 

Is ethanol drinkable?

 

Yes, but I'm sure not drinking straight ethanol. Its basically moonshine (aka White Lightning) and it will knock you around hard. Some info below.

Ethanol - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonshine

 

It is but Fuel grade is "denatured" with GASOLINE or butane or CNG. It is usually 1%. So not so good to drink. Some of the "ethanol plants in Iowa actually sell it both ways but comes from the same kernal of corn.

 

Well than ,we can buy E85 ,clean it of gas ,sell it as booze for 10 times the price and buy more E85. Isn't ?