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As we look at alternative fuels ethanol is one that has been in the news latelty. Ethanol is an alcohol-based alternative fuel produced by fermenting and distilling starch crops that have been converted into simple sugars. Feedstocks for this fuel include corn, barley, and wheat. Ethanol can also be produced from “cellulosic biomass” such as trees and grasses and is called bioethanol. Ethanol is most commonly used to increase octane and improve the emissions quality of gasoline. Currently there is research into the use of switch grass to increase the output of the biomass.

Ethanol can be blended with gasoline to create E85, a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. E85 and blends with even higher concentrations of ethanol, E95, for example, qualify as alternative fuels under the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct). Vehicles that run on E85 are called flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs) and are offered by several vehicle manufacturers. Keep in mind that if your engine is not designed to use E85, don’t use it in your engine or you may cause severe damage.

In some areas of the United States, lower concentrations of ethanol are blended with gasoline. The most common low concentration blend is E10 (10% ethanol and 90% gasoline). While it reduces emissions, E10 is not considered an alternative fuel under EPAct regulations.

How is Ethanol Made?

Ethanol can be produced from any biological feedstocks that contain appreciable amounts of sugar or materials that can be converted into sugar such as starch or cellulose. Sugar beets and sugar cane are examples of feedstocks that contain sugar. Corn contains starch that can relatively easily be converted into sugar. A significant percentage of trees and grasses are made up of cellulose, which can also be converted to sugar, although with more difficulty than required to convert starch.

The ethanol production process starts by grinding up the feedstock so it is more easily and quickly processed in the following steps. Once ground up, the sugar is either dissolved out of the material or the starch or cellulose is converted into sugar. The sugar is then fed to microbes that use it for food, producing ethanol and carbon dioxide in the process. A final step purifies the ethanol to the desired concentration.

Ethanol is also made from a wet-milling process. Many larger ethanol producers use this process, which also yields products such as high-fructose corn sweetener.

First alternative energy sources create several benefits. Renewable energy development may create quality jobs as well as promote economic development. This is important for rural areas. If it is used to diversify utility resource portfolios, alternative energy technologies will provide a hedge against rising fuel prices and can be valuable risk management tools. Especially in our geopolitical climate today.

While sometimes renewable energy resources are not available (for example if the wind does not always blow or the sun does not always shine), the technologies are very reliable when the “fuel” is available. In this regard, they can add to the reliability of the electricity grid, especially for businesses in which power outages are extremely costly. The more options the better. Thinking about alternative energy can lead us to new perspectives. We have to think outside the box. If we look at things with unprejudiced eyes, we will see that alternative fuel makes perfect sense

At the point of use, solar and wind technologies are completely emissions-free. This makes them extremely attractive from an environmental standpoint. An additional environmental benefit could be the “brightfields” concept: that is installing clean energy technology-related businesses in environmentally blighted areas (brownfields).

Finally, selected applications of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies can enhance the disaster resiliency of communities and individual structures. For example, roof- or skid-mounted solar electric systems can provide needed power to hospitals, fire stations, police departments, gas stations, national guard armories, etc. in the sunny days that follow destructive storms. This is especially important with the severe weather that the US has experienced lately.

Air pollution can make you sick. It can cause burning eyes and nose and an itchy, irritated throat, as well as trouble in breathing. Some chemicals found in polluted air cause cancer, birth defects, brain and nerve damage and long-term injury to the lungs and breathing passages. Some air pollutants are so dangerous that accidental releases can cause serious injury or even death.
Air pollution can damage the environment. Trees, lakes and animals have been harmed by air pollution. Air pollutants have thinned the protective ozone layer above the Earth; this loss of ozone could cause changes in the environment as well as more skin cancer and cataracts (eye damage) in people.

Air pollution can damage property. It can dirty buildings and other structures. Some common pollutants eat away stone, damaging buildings, monuments and statues.

Air pollution can cause haze, reducing visibility in national parks and sometime interfering with aviation.

The Clean Air Act will improve air quality in the United States, a good thing for your health, your property and the environment. The 1990 Act[1] could change the way you work or do business, and it could, in some ways, change the way you live. The 1990 Clean Air Act is lengthy–about 800 pages–because it tackles many difficult and complicated air pollution problems.