Ethanol: Myths and realities

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12872060/

Ten questions — and answers — about the much-hyped biofuel

Updated: 12:13 a.m. MT May 19, 2006

What exactly is ethanol?
The fuel is derived from plants through a fairly straightforward
process. In one common method Corn, is first ground into a fine
powder, mixed with water, and then heated. An enzyme is then added to
convert the mixture into sugars before yeast is added to ferment it.
The resulting liquid, called "beer," is about 10% alcohol. A
distillation process then separates the alcohol from the rest of the
mixture before the remaining water is removed. The result is
essentially pure alcohol. A small amount of gas is added to render the
liquid undrinkable. Then the fuel can be used by itself or as a
supplement to gasoline to power cars.

Ethanol has three advantages, at least in theory: It's renewable, it
can be domestically produced, and it burns cleaner than gas. The
world's largest producers of ethanol are the U.S., which makes it
primarily from corn, and Brazil, which mashes the stuff out of
sugarcane.

Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?
It's becoming an increasingly important part of the fuel supply, and
has the potential to become still more crucial. President George W.
Bush and members of Congress have expressed support for ethanol use.
And this spring, refiners in parts of Texas and the Northeast have
been replacing a gasoline additive called MTBE (for methyl
tertiary-butyl ether) with ethanol. MTBE, a chemical used to oxygenate
fuel, can contaminate drinking water. And Ethanol which does not
present the same danger, can serve the same purpose in fuel.

That's not all. The 2005 energy bill requires that the U.S. boost its
ethanol production to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012, up from about 4
billion in 2005. This sounds like a whole lot of ethanol, but bear in
mind, last year the U.S. slurped up almost 140 billion gallons of gas.

Are there any problems with ethanol?
Oh, yes. Ethanol can't travel in pipelines along with gasoline,
because it picks up excess water and impurities. As a result, ethanol
needs to be transported by trucks, trains, or barges, which is more
expensive and complicated than sending it down a pipeline. As refiners
switched to ethanol this spring, the change in transport needs has
likely contributed to the rise in gas prices. Some experts argue that
the U. S. doesn't have adequate infrastructure for wide ethanol use.

Also, ethanol contains less energy than gas. That means drivers have
to make more frequent trips to the pump.

Doesn't producing ethanol on a large scale use a great deal of energy?
Yes. Some ethanol skeptics have even argued that the process involved
in growing grain and then transforming it into ethanol requires more
energy from fossil fuels than ethanol generates. In other words, they
say the whole movement is a farce.

There's no absolute consensus in the scientific community, but that
argument is losing strength. Michael Wang, a scientist at the Energy
Department-funded Argonne National Laboratory for Transportation
Research, says "The energy used for each unit of ethanol produced has
been reduced by about half [since 1980]." Now, Wang says, the delivery
of 1 million British thermal units of ethanol uses 0.74 million BTUs
of fossil fuels. (That does not include the solar energy -- the sun
shining -- used in growing corn.) By contrast, he finds that the
delivery of 1 million BTUs of gasoline requires 1.23 million BTU of
fossil fuels.

Producing ethanol could get more efficient soon as new technologies
help farmers get more corn per acre of land and allow ethanol
producers to get more of the fuel from the same amount of corn. The
companies developing new corn technologies include chemical giant
Dupont and Monsanto, which sells genetically modified seeds as well as
chemicals for protecting crops.

So where can I find ethanol?
There's a good chance you're using it already. It's mixed into gas in
many regions of the country including the corn-belt Midwest, and
states like California and New York which had already banned MTBE. The
regions making the transition this spring are the Northeast and parts
of Texas.

Cars in the U.S. can normally drive on E10, a mixture of 10% ethanol
and 90% gasoline, that is sometimes called gasohol. It's how Americans
usually take their ethanol. Relatively few cars available here are
"flex-fuel," meaning that they can run on much higher concentrations
of ethanol. The fuel E85, which is 85% ethanol, is sold at some gas
stations concentrated in the Midwest.

Is ethanol cheaper than gas?
Surprise, surprise, it isn't. The move this spring by more regions to
use ethanol means that demand has spiked, driving up prices. On
Monday, the New York harbor price was around $3 per gallon compared
with about $2.28 for gasoline (before being mixed with ethanol). In
other words, for now ethanol is helping to increase prices at the
pump, not to push them down.

So ethanol production and distribution are also controlled by market
forces, right?
Only to a certain degree. In addition to heavily subsidizing the
ethanol produced domestically, the U.S. government levies a 54 cent
per gallon tariff on imports from other countries, such as Brazil, a
lower-cost producer. This, of course, discourages the U.S. from
importing cheaper ethanol.

Why not eliminate the tariffs?
Well, the idea behind the tariffs is to foster domestic production of
ethanol. But amid the ongoing furor over high gas prices the idea of
repealing the levy has gained momentum in Washington. Though it would
probably annoy ethanol producers like agricultural giant Archer
Daniels Midland, removing the tariffs could have some benefits. It
would help ease price pressures and would likely encourage Brazil to
boost its ethanol production. However, it's probably not a short-term
solution.

Brazil is undergoing an ethanol revolution far more drastic than that
in the U.S. Flex-fuel cars which can run solely on ethanol are widely
available and the ethanol supply is short enough that the government
recently reduced the mandatory ethanol content in gasoline from 25 to
20 percent.

"Brazil is the model" for how ethanol can be brought into use, wrote
Citigroup analyst P. J. Juvekar in a recent report. But while buying
ethanol from Brazil could be useful in the future, it's not going to
reduce the pain of a road trip this summer.

What companies stand to benefit from increased ethanol use?
There is a crop of American ethanol producers. ADM is by far the
largest, pumping out about one-quarter of the U.S. total. MGP
Ingredients is one of the many smaller companies involved. Verasun
Energy and Aventine Renewable Energy, two other producers of note,
have recently filed to go public.

What can we expect to change in the future?
At present commercial corn-based ethanol comes from corn kernels. One
of the more exciting ethanol prospects on the horizon is cellulosic
ethanol, which can be made from a number of plant by-products,
including cornstalks. Although it's unlikely to be commercially
available for at least a few years, cellulosic ethanol eventually
could help substantially reduce costs. In other words, your car in the
future could run on the refuse of farms across the U.S.

laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE wrote:
> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12872060/
>
> Ten questions - and answers - about the much-hyped biofuel
>
> Updated: 12:13 a.m. MT May 19, 2006
>
> What exactly is ethanol?
> The fuel is derived from plants through a fairly straightforward
> process. In one common method Corn, is first ground into a fine
> powder, mixed with water, and then heated. An enzyme is then added to
> convert the mixture into sugars before yeast is added to ferment it.
> The resulting liquid, called "beer," is about 10% alcohol. A
> distillation process then separates the alcohol from the rest of the
> mixture before the remaining water is removed. The result is
> essentially pure alcohol. A small amount of gas is added to render the
> liquid undrinkable.

Hah! I could see it now, if they didnt do that, people would bring
their gas cans to the station on Friday night to fill up with ethanol
before that big party....


> Then the fuel can be used by itself or as a
> supplement to gasoline to power cars.
>
> Ethanol has three advantages, at least in theory: It's renewable, it
> can be domestically produced, and it burns cleaner than gas. The
> world's largest producers of ethanol are the U.S., which makes it
> primarily from corn, and Brazil, which mashes the stuff out of
> sugarcane.
>
> Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?
> It's becoming an increasingly important part of the fuel supply, and
> has the potential to become still more crucial. President George W.
> Bush and members of Congress have expressed support for ethanol use.
> And this spring, refiners in parts of Texas and the Northeast have
> been replacing a gasoline additive called MTBE (for methyl
> tertiary-butyl ether) with ethanol. MTBE, a chemical used to oxygenate
> fuel, can contaminate drinking water. And Ethanol which does not
> present the same danger, can serve the same purpose in fuel.
>
> That's not all. The 2005 energy bill requires that the U.S. boost its
> ethanol production to 7.5 billion gallons by 2012, up from about 4
> billion in 2005. This sounds like a whole lot of ethanol, but bear in
> mind, last year the U.S. slurped up almost 140 billion gallons of gas.
>
> Are there any problems with ethanol?
> Oh, yes. Ethanol can't travel in pipelines along with gasoline,
> because it picks up excess water and impurities. As a result, ethanol
> needs to be transported by trucks, trains, or barges, which is more
> expensive and complicated than sending it down a pipeline. As refiners
> switched to ethanol this spring, the change in transport needs has
> likely contributed to the rise in gas prices. Some experts argue that
> the U. S. doesn't have adequate infrastructure for wide ethanol use.
>
> Also, ethanol contains less energy than gas. That means drivers have
> to make more frequent trips to the pump.
>
> Doesn't producing ethanol on a large scale use a great deal of energy?
> Yes. Some ethanol skeptics have even argued that the process involved
> in growing grain and then transforming it into ethanol requires more
> energy from fossil fuels than ethanol generates. In other words, they
> say the whole movement is a farce.
>
> There's no absolute consensus in the scientific community, but that
> argument is losing strength. Michael Wang, a scientist at the Energy
> Department-funded Argonne National Laboratory for Transportation
> Research, says "The energy used for each unit of ethanol produced has
> been reduced by about half [since 1980]." Now, Wang says, the delivery
> of 1 million British thermal units of ethanol uses 0.74 million BTUs
> of fossil fuels. (That does not include the solar energy -- the sun
> shining -- used in growing corn.) By contrast, he finds that the
> delivery of 1 million BTUs of gasoline requires 1.23 million BTU of
> fossil fuels.
>
> Producing ethanol could get more efficient soon as new technologies
> help farmers get more corn per acre of land and allow ethanol
> producers to get more of the fuel from the same amount of corn. The
> companies developing new corn technologies include chemical giant
> Dupont and Monsanto, which sells genetically modified seeds as well as
> chemicals for protecting crops.
>
> So where can I find ethanol?
> There's a good chance you're using it already. It's mixed into gas in
> many regions of the country including the corn-belt Midwest, and
> states like California and New York which had already banned MTBE. The
> regions making the transition this spring are the Northeast and parts
> of Texas.
>
> Cars in the U.S. can normally drive on E10, a mixture of 10% ethanol
> and 90% gasoline, that is sometimes called gasohol. It's how Americans
> usually take their ethanol. Relatively few cars available here are
> "flex-fuel," meaning that they can run on much higher concentrations
> of ethanol. The fuel E85, which is 85% ethanol, is sold at some gas
> stations concentrated in the Midwest.
>
> Is ethanol cheaper than gas?
> Surprise, surprise, it isn't. The move this spring by more regions to
> use ethanol means that demand has spiked, driving up prices. On
> Monday, the New York harbor price was around $3 per gallon compared
> with about $2.28 for gasoline (before being mixed with ethanol). In
> other words, for now ethanol is helping to increase prices at the
> pump, not to push them down.
>
> So ethanol production and distribution are also controlled by market
> forces, right?
> Only to a certain degree. In addition to heavily subsidizing the
> ethanol produced domestically, the U.S. government levies a 54 cent
> per gallon tariff on imports from other countries, such as Brazil, a
> lower-cost producer. This, of course, discourages the U.S. from
> importing cheaper ethanol.
>
> Why not eliminate the tariffs?
> Well, the idea behind the tariffs is to foster domestic production of
> ethanol. But amid the ongoing furor over high gas prices the idea of
> repealing the levy has gained momentum in Washington. Though it would
> probably annoy ethanol producers like agricultural giant Archer
> Daniels Midland, removing the tariffs could have some benefits. It
> would help ease price pressures and would likely encourage Brazil to
> boost its ethanol production. However, it's probably not a short-term
> solution.
>
> Brazil is undergoing an ethanol revolution far more drastic than that
> in the U.S. Flex-fuel cars which can run solely on ethanol are widely
> available and the ethanol supply is short enough that the government
> recently reduced the mandatory ethanol content in gasoline from 25 to
> 20 percent.
>
> "Brazil is the model" for how ethanol can be brought into use, wrote
> Citigroup analyst P. J. Juvekar in a recent report. But while buying
> ethanol from Brazil could be useful in the future, it's not going to
> reduce the pain of a road trip this summer.
>
> What companies stand to benefit from increased ethanol use?
> There is a crop of American ethanol producers. ADM is by far the
> largest, pumping out about one-quarter of the U.S. total. MGP
> Ingredients is one of the many smaller companies involved. Verasun
> Energy and Aventine Renewable Energy, two other producers of note,
> have recently filed to go public.
>
> What can we expect to change in the future?
> At present commercial corn-based ethanol comes from corn kernels. One
> of the more exciting ethanol prospects on the horizon is cellulosic
> ethanol, which can be made from a number of plant by-products,
> including cornstalks. Although it's unlikely to be commercially
> available for at least a few years, cellulosic ethanol eventually
> could help substantially reduce costs. In other words, your car in the
> future could run on the refuse of farms across the U.S.

"laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE" > wrote in message
news
>
> Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?

Because genetic engineering has been used to create a microbe that can
convert cellulose to alcohol at cheaper price than gas very efficiently with
just water and sunlight. Venture capitalist and other capital is in the
game because of the new genetic engineering approach.

laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE wrote:
> http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12872060/
>
> Ten questions - and answers - about the much-hyped biofuel
>
> Updated: 12:13 a.m. MT May 19, 2006
>
> What exactly is ethanol?
> The fuel is derived from plants through a fairly straightforward
> process. In one common method Corn, is first ground into a fine
> powder, mixed with water, and then heated. An enzyme is then added to
> convert the mixture into sugars before yeast is added to ferment it.
> The resulting liquid, called "beer," is about 10% alcohol. A
> distillation process then separates the alcohol from the rest of the
> mixture before the remaining water is removed. The result is
> essentially pure alcohol. A small amount of gas is added to render the
> liquid undrinkable. Then the fuel can be used by itself or as a
> supplement to gasoline to power cars.


Another result is also a big pile of stuff that cows can digest easier
than the original corn. Instead of fermenting all the corn in the
midwest, some of the corn can be shipped to finishing feed lots, such
as Harris Ranch in California. The corn can then be fermented on site
to extract alcohol and feed cows. The economic benefit just may be in
the cattle feed. Alcohol would be a byproduct.

On the other hand, pigs can digest more of the cellulose, so the
process might be to feed the corn to pigs, collect the methane from the
pig manure and turn the methane into some other oxidizing agent for
blending fuel for internal combustion engines.

Jack May wrote:
> "laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE" > wrote in message
> news
>>
>> Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?
>
> Because genetic engineering has been used to create a microbe that can
> convert cellulose to alcohol at cheaper price than gas very efficiently with
> just water and sunlight. Venture capitalist and other capital is in the
> game because of the new genetic engineering approach.

I've got a chemical engineering degree but haven't used it much lately
(mostly software development thee days). You still have to remove water
from the ethanol somehow. Solar stills only work in an area that's sunny
most of the time, like the Southwest. But that's not where corn is
grown, so there's a transportation expense of some kind, either for the
corn or for the mash. Can anyone point me toward a Website written by a
real engineer that has actully figured out the costs and the process?

--
Pat O'Connell
[note munged EMail address]
Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints,
Kill nothing but vandals...

"Pat O'Connell" > wrote in message
...
> Jack May wrote:
>> "laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE" > wrote in message
>> news
>>>
>>> Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?
>>
>> Because genetic engineering has been used to create a microbe that can
>> convert cellulose to alcohol at cheaper price than gas very efficiently
>> with just water and sunlight. Venture capitalist and other capital is
>> in the game because of the new genetic engineering approach.
>
> I've got a chemical engineering degree but haven't used it much lately
> (mostly software development thee days). You still have to remove water
> from the ethanol somehow. Solar stills only work in an area that's sunny
> most of the time, like the Southwest. But that's not where corn is grown,
> so there's a transportation expense of some kind, either for the corn or
> for the mash. Can anyone point me toward a Website written by a real
> engineer that has actully figured out the costs and the process?

The process is using waste cellulose not corn. It is not a traditional
distillation process. The total cost is about 75 percent of the cost of
gasoline at the wholesale level. I don't know if that is corrected for
the energy equivalent of alcohol vs. gas.

The only information I have seen was in the San Jose Mercury new discussing
venture capital in alternative fuels.

Pat O'Connell > wrote in
:

> Jack May wrote:
>> "laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE" > wrote in
>> message news
>>>
>>> Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?
>>
>> Because genetic engineering has been used to create a microbe that
>> can convert cellulose to alcohol at cheaper price than gas very
>> efficiently with just water and sunlight. Venture capitalist and
>> other capital is in the game because of the new genetic engineering
>> approach.
>
> I've got a chemical engineering degree but haven't used it much lately
> (mostly software development thee days). You still have to remove
> water from the ethanol somehow. Solar stills only work in an area
> that's sunny most of the time, like the Southwest. But that's not
> where corn is grown, so there's a transportation expense of some kind,
> either for the corn or for the mash. Can anyone point me toward a
> Website written by a real engineer that has actully figured out the
> costs and the process?
>

Some here have claimed that leftover fermentation refuse gets burned for
process energy,but then I don't see how it could be used for animal
feed,and whatever's left from burning still has to be disposed
properly(environmentally safe).

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

Pat O'Connell > wrote in
:


I forgot to mention that alk production is going to take a LOT of precious
water,that is not in plentiful supply in many places.Aquifers are already
being depleted,and Western water supplies carefully apportioned by law.
(and already being contested,too) The Great Lakes states will not allow
their freshwater to be piped elsewhere,and that would have some negative
environmental effect,too.


--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

[political newsgroups removed]
Jack May wrote:
> "Pat O'Connell" > wrote in message
> ...
>> Jack May wrote:
>>> "laura bush - VEHICULAR HOMICIDE" > wrote in
>>> message news >>>>
>>>> Beyond high gas prices, why is everyone talking about ethanol?
>>>
>>> Because genetic engineering has been used to create a microbe
>>> that can convert cellulose to alcohol at cheaper price than gas
>>> very efficiently with just water and sunlight. Venture
>>> capitalist and other capital is in the game because of the new
>>> genetic engineering approach.
>>
>> I've got a chemical engineering degree but haven't used it much
>> lately (mostly software development thee days). You still have to
>> remove water from the ethanol somehow. Solar stills only work in an
>> area that's sunny most of the time, like the Southwest. But that's
>> not where corn is grown, so there's a transportation expense of
>> some kind, either for the corn or for the mash. Can anyone point me
>> toward a Website written by a real engineer that has actully
>> figured out the costs and the process?
>
> The process is using waste cellulose not corn. It is not a
> traditional distillation process. The total cost is about 75

Still requires energy of some sort to do the distillation. Solar heat is
only reliable enough in the desert Southwest. The cellulose has to get
down there somehow. I'm from the Midwest originally where most corn is
grown, and know what the climate (and rain) is like.

> percent of the cost of
> gasoline at the wholesale level. I don't know if that is corrected
> for the energy equivalent of alcohol vs. gas.
>
> The only information I have seen was in the San Jose Mercury new
> discussing venture capital in alternative fuels.

Nothing particularly wrong with that paper (actually I've heard it's
quite good), but newspapers often get their facts wrong when science and
engineering are the meat of an article.

--
Pat O'Connell
[note munged EMail address]
Take nothing but pictures, Leave nothing but footprints,
Kill nothing but vandals...

"Pat O'Connell" > wrote in message
...
> [political newsgroups removed]
> Still requires energy of some sort to do the distillation. Solar heat is
> only reliable enough in the desert Southwest. The cellulose has to get
> down there somehow. I'm from the Midwest originally where most corn is
> grown, and know what the climate (and rain) is like.

This is venture capital developing new technology which is mainly genetic
engineering based. They are not going to publish information on the process
so that their competitors can copy their ideas. There does not appear to
be any distillation because the alcohol is being produced by genetically
engineered microbes.


You can't make assumptions that they are doing something in particular
because they are not releasing details. They are funding high technology as
always, not taking known processing techniques and do the same thing as in
the past.

Replicating the past does not give a competitive advantage to allow them to
win a big part of a market.

> Nothing particularly wrong with that paper (actually I've heard it's quite
> good), but newspapers often get their facts wrong when science and
> engineering are the meat of an article.

When a lot of money is going into developing a new technology, in general
there are no articles. You can't do engineering estimates on a process
which may never be published and is almost certainly not like past
processes. That is the culture of venture capital and the high tech of the
SF Bay area in general.