It is my understanding that it takes a lot of energy to make a gallon of ethanol. From what I have read by the time you count the decrease mileage component, it is a wash in energy used to create ethanol vs just using plain gasoline. If it weren't for government programs ethanol would not be possible as a stand alone business unit. Why pump money into an energy source that can't support itself. If we used sugar cane rather than corn, the math would work from what I understand. I am no expert, I may be reading erroneous information.
1) Using reasonable math, and realizing that a bushel of corn makes 2.8 gallons of ethanol and 17 lbs of high-protien livestock feed, credible studies show we gain about 20-30% gain in energy over what it costs to produce a gallon of ethanol. This includes growing the corn, fertilizer, transportation, etc.
This is not a terrific gain but it is a positive net gain as we struggle to find better fuel sources that actually work. With 'only' a 25% net gain in energy, at least it is something that does work, and works with mostly existing vehicles on the road.
Electric vehicles have a $7000 govt handout with each sold; they still cost more than a mid sized luxury; and then only go 50 miles before they die or need to run on gas anyhow. Hydrogen takes a different engine, and so far creating hydrogen takes more energy that it produces so is a negative. Ethanol you can put in a tank at 20-30% blend on any car, and very easy to become flexfuel and run 85% ethanol - no other alternative fuel can match that at all?
2) As of the 1st of the year, there is no ethanol subsidy. So the govt programs part no longer applies.
3) We are currently exporting 10% of USA corn ethanol production to Brazil - turns out corn is pretty fficient after all. Cane is limited to very few places on this earth. Corn grows well and plentiful in a large part of the USA, and we've improved efficiencies so much in the last 10 years, old studies are worthless. Went from 2.3 gallons pr bu to 2.8 bu, use less energy along the way, some plant even pull the ol from the corn and make bio-diesel from the corn as well - efficiency has improved tremendously.
4. Yup, ethanol cleans out an old fuel system, hopefully most places are running E10 now a days, so this is less of a problem. But E85 will loosen up old varnish in your 100% gasoline system and plug some filters. More of a negative as to how bad gasoline is, than to say it's a bad thing of ethanol?
5. Certainly not all, but some of the gasoline price increase in the last month comes from the ethanol subsidies ending on January 1st. A little less tax money spent now, but we pay a few more pennies per gallon of fuel. Kinda comes out a wash, but fairer I guess.
In the end, ethanol is not _the_ answer to our fuel problems, but it is a step, a help, a bridge where we can use our old cars and engines, as we search for even better options. Corn ethanol isn't perfect and it's not the total answer, but pretty hard to find fault with it if you look at the big picture.
--->Paul
