Mean Green

Ethanol cars work in a way very similar to normal gasoline cars, and are a great viable alternative fuel option because of current high gas prices. The only real difference is that ethanol car engines are able to utilize the biofuel ethanol instead of oil based gasoline.

Ethanol fuel itself is extracted from plants such as corn or sugarcane, and refined into an alcohol. This alcohol is suitable to be used as a biofuel in cars and other vehicles. Most hybrid automobile engines that use ethanol can also use gasoline, and are also called “flex-fuel” engines. The ethanol is injected into the engine in the same way as a non-hybrid automobile engine. Though ethanol gives slightly less miles per gallon than gasoline, it doesn’t create as much air pollution when it is burned.

The similarities between ethanol “flex-fuel” engines and standard engines make ethanol cars cheaper than most alternative or hybrid vehicles, because they are built in much the same way as a regular engine. Ethanol is actually cheaper in some cases than gasoline, and thus a hybrid that runs on ethanol can be less expensive to operate than a gasoline based vehicle.

Most standard automobiles can even run on a 10% mixture of ethanol in gasoline. Many gas stations around the world offer ethanol as an alternative to gasoline, and in some countries cars are required to run on ethanol.

You can find out more information about Hybrid Cars at www.prohybrid.com along with video news, reviews, and tools such as price quotes and an automotive loan calculator.

Biofuels are moving fuels like ethanol and biodiesel is a diesel that is finished from biomass resources. These fuels are generally merged with the petroleum fuels – gasoline and diesel fuel. They can also be used individually as well. Using ethanol or biodiesel facilitates lesser burning than fossil fuel. However, ethanol and biodiesel are unfortunately, more expensive than the fossil fuels. Nevertheless, they are uncontaminated fuels, producing smaller quantity of air pollutants and are safer and greener to the environment.

Ethanol is an alcoholic fuel prepared from the sugars found in grains, such as corn, sorghum, and wheat, along with potato skins, rice, sugarcane, sugar beets, and yard clippings. Biodiesel is prepared from vegetable oils, fats, or greases. Biodiesel fuels can be used in diesel engines not including any changes in them. It is the best ever budding substitute petroleum in countries such as United States. Biodiesel is a renewable source of energy and thus is safe, recyclable, and decreases the release of the majority air toxins. It is no doubt an eco-friendly version of diesel.

It is frequently asserted that biofuels are carbon-neutral as they release CO2 when burnt that was previously present in the atmosphere. There is a considerable CO2 discharge from the refinery and distillery processes required to make biodiesel or bioethanol, as well as for transport, the use of ranch machinery, and manure production. Biodiesel, in particular, is connected to high releases of the powerful and long-term greenhouse gas nitrous oxide, released by microbes when nitrogen fertilizers are applied to soils, and also throughout the manufacture of nitrogen fertilizers.

There are two main types of biofuels for transport:

Bioethanol, which is an alcohol derivative of sugar or starch, for example from sugar beet, cane or from corn, and

Biodiesel, derivative of vegetable oils, for example from rapeseed oil, jatropha, soy or palm oil.

United States is the world’s biggest bioethanol manufacturer, and this books for 99% of their biofuel for road transport. The region is, as of yet, the world’s chief biodiesel creator, and prefer biodiesel than bioethanol. It is discovered that ethanol has preferably less greenhouse gas releases than petrol.

Among the biofuel crops grown in Europe and the US, biodiesel is usually measured to be more energy competent than bioethanol. A few biodiesel crops, such as oilseed rape are developed with huge magnitude of fertilizers, which compensate for a lot of the greenhouse gas reserves.

To learn much more about the different types of renewable energy sources, visit http://renewable-energy-sources-info.blogspot.com/ where you’ll find this and mucho more, including biodiesel, biofuel, Bioethanol, biomass,geothermal and many more renewable energy sources

Biofuels, simply put, are fuels that are derived from agricultural products. Biofuels are a renewable source of energy that can be used in many applications, from fueling your vehicle, to generating electricity and heating your home.Recently, biofuels have been attracting attention from various sectors. Biofuels are considered to be ‘carbon-neutral’, which simply means that the amount of carbon dioxide which is created when burned, is equal to the amount of carbon dioxide used during growing. It is hoped to be a ‘green’ alternative to petroleum, which has generated a lot of interest from investors and different countries around the World.

Types of BioFuels

Ethanol

Ethanol is a fuel derived largely from corn and sugar cane, although it can also be made from other sources of sugar as well.

Currently, ethanol is largely used as an additive to Gasoline, which could cut are dependence on foreign oil, and has the potential to replace gasoline altogether.Ethanol can also be ‘home-brewed’ and there are many products available online to assist an individual in that dream of brewing their own gas.

Ethanol, does however face some hurdles before it becomes a true replacement for Oil. Considerations such as food supply should take precedence, as much of the stock that is used is derived from food sources. With expected production to e in the billions of gallons, we must take care not to create more problems in the future than solve them. Ethanol can be made from plant sources without starving people, but this will take research and commitment on the part of Government and Industry officials

BioDiesel

Bio diesel is a term used to describe various types of esters derived from vegetable oils. The most common is rape seed oil, however other oils can e used. Some examples are waste vegetable oil from a fryer, soybean oil, sunflower oil and palm oil. Bio diesel is usually made from either the methyl ester or ethyl ester of the base oil.

Bio Diesel use around the World varies. In Brazil, a country already with a huge lead, recently opened a bio diesel refinery, further lessening it’s dependence on Oil. In the U.S., Bio Diesel is becoming an attractive alternative due to rising Gas prices. Bio Diesel’s biggest impact would be in the transportation sector, but it can also be applied to any machine that uses Diesel.

AlgaeOil

Another source, and quite amazing source, for Bio Fuels, is Algae. Algae Oil can be grown in any water source and can be a great source of base materials for both Ethanol and Bio Diesel production. Algae production in the U.S. is practically non-existent. Algae has a great potential as a source of raw material. The problems concerning food supply associated with producing Ethanol doesn’t matter for Algae. Investment in this source should be perused as the pay-off will be immense.

We are now facing a Global Fuel crisis. Rising fuel prices have the potential to impact global society and security in a very negative way. We must now seek an interim solution to this potentially devastating problem until Hydrogen is perfected as a source of energy. Failure to do this could doom future generations to hardship and misery. The time is now to act.

e to fully understand if there is a relationship between ethanol and biodiesel, it will probably be a good idea to learn about them individually, this will then help you get a proper understanding of these two biofuels. You will probably find that ethanol and biodiesel are quite similar in lots of ways, therefore, consideration should be given to both of them when thinking about alternatives to fossil fuel.

Ethanol information:

Ethanol is a mildly toxic,flammable and colorless mixture of chemicals with a very noticeable perfume like smell, it is also the same type of alcohol that you will find in your nice cool beer, however, it is simply referred to as alcohol.

Ethanol has been used by humans as far back as when the dinosaurs were on the planet, and even though it has been used for more negative reasons, such as explosives because of its volatile nature, it has also been though of as positive when made into alcohol drinks and other products. Ethanol has also been used as an essence to help illness for many thousands of years, and so this is also recognized as being a positive use.

Another point to consider is, ethanol is the fuel which is at present being considered to replace fossil fuels, this is a very important topic, particularly when we consider that we are in a crazy war with Iraq and this is a country where we get most of our fuel from.

So what is biodiesel?

Biodiesel is a fuel which is been considered as diesel replacement, it is a fuel that is manufactured from biological sources, such as corn, oilseed rape and sugar beet. Although both ethanol and biodiesel are normally mixed with gas and diesel, some of the newer vehicles designs can run on pure biofuel with only very simple modifications. Lack of consumer understanding of ethanol and biodiesel is a key reason for limited confidence in it, although this is starting to change world wide.

Ethanol and biodiesel relationship:

When thinking about the relationship between ethanol and biodiesel, probably the most important thing that should be taken into consideration is that these are the two main options that are being looked at with respect to which will be better for the environment overall. Ethanol, however is considered as being the better choice, and this is for several different reasons. It is also fair to say that biodiesel as many benefits as well.

On a positive note, production of alternative fuel in the US is putting hundreds of millions of dollars into the American farming community, so this must also be taken into consideration as well.

Biofuels are hot. But how hot? Here are “just the facts.” But first, what are biofuels? These are fuels derived from plants or animal fat that can replace such familiar oil-based transportation fuels as gasoline or diesel.

Ethanol can be distilled from corn, sugarcane or even straw and other cellulosic plant materials such as wood chips or grasses. Biodiesel is produced from vegetable oil crops such as palm, soybeans or rapeseed, or animal fats and leftover restaurant grease.

High oil prices, technological advances, concerns about energy security and the environment, and efforts to revitalize rural economies have all intersected to drive the biofuels boom. Ethanol has been used as a gasoline additive or stand-alone fuel in the United States and Brazil since the 1970s, but in recent years there has been an explosion of interest, resulting in substantial investment and steeply increased production.

Biodiesel is relatively new in the U.S., but has attracted strong interest and investment as well. There are 113 ethanol plants producing today in the U.S., with a capacity of 5.6 billion gallons per year or 365,000 barrels per day (bd).

Another 84 ethanol plants are either under construction or expanding, which could add another 6.1 billion gallons of annual production capacity (400,000 bd) in the next few years. A barrel of ethanol contains 3.54 million British Thermal Units (BTUs) of energy, while a barrel of gasoline contains 5.25 million BTUs. This means that a gallon of ethanol only provides about 70 percent of the energy that one gets from a gallon of gasoline. A state-of-the-art ethanol plant today can convert a bushel of corn into about 2.8 gallons of fuel ethanol. Two decades ago, this figure was closer to 2 gallons.

n the United States, blenders of ethanol receive a 51 cent-per gallon tax credit for every gallon of ethanol used in gasoline; for biodiesel, the equivalent credit is $1.00 per gallon. In 1980, the U.S. consumed a grand total of 11,000 barrels of ethanol per day. By early 2007, that demand had reached about 400,000 barrels per day, or over four percent of the total gasoline market by volume.

Current federal legislation requires 7.5 billion gallons (490,000 bd) of biofuel use by 2012. The Bush administration recently proposed a target of 35 billion gallons (2.3 million bd) of renewable and alternative fuels by 2017-a goal that would likely require major advances in cellulosic ethanol technology.

In 2006, the ethanol sector consumed nearly 2.2 billion bushels of corn-about 20 percent of the total U.S. harvest of 10.7 billion bushels. Ethanol can be produced from non-food crops, such as switchgrass and straw. But this approach can’t yet compete in the marketplace. There is currently intense interest in making this process-”cellulosic ethanol”-commercially viable.

The US biodiesel industry is much smaller than the ethanol industry. Current annual production is estimated at 250 million gallons (16,000 bd), although it is growing quickly. Europe is currently the world leader in biodiesel production and use. Annual production is currently over 1.5 billion gallons (100,000 bd) with substantial new capacity under construction.

Why is it that stupid ideas find so many followers? European Governments, the US Federal Government, and an increasing number of US State Governments have issued legislation that requires the use of ethanol in cars.

Making ethanol from corn was promoted by the US agricultural lobby as the best approach for producing biofuels. None of the decision makers listened to the advice of scientists, who pointed out correctly, that the benefits of ethanol were minute. Ethanol is incapable of reducing consumption of petroleum-derived fuels and of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Almost all of the food producing acreage in the US must be converted to growing corn before a sizeable reduction in foreign petroleum imports can be expected.

For the agricultural lobby the financial rewards of the ethanol craze have been spectacular. When future prices of corn began to escalate, more and more farmers decided to plant corn in favor of other crops like soybean and wheat. Predictably, food prices started soaring.

Now we must deal with the sorry political mess that the ethanol subsidy of the US Federal Government has left behind. Poor countries have been hit hard with escalating prices for grains and other basic food staples. Protests are growing across the globe demanding price reductions or price controls. Demonstrations are stoking social unrest in many countries. Demands are growing to prohibit the production of biofuels altogether.

What originally began as an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and an attempt to reduce consumption of fossil fuels and petroleum, may instead be perceived as a worldwide failure of renewable biofuels. Such result would be unfortunate and ultimately disastrous.

We know for sure that petroleum reserves are getting scarce and will be depleted soon. We know for sure that global warming is caused by greenhouse gases produced by fossil fuel combustion. We know for sure that economies will begin to fail, when liquid motor fuels become scarce and unaffordable.

We must replace fossil petroleum sources with an alternate source for liquid fuels or world economies are doomed to fail and contract. Only biomass meets the requirements for such a new energy source. However, virtually all the biomass crops, which are being used, have one common shortcoming. Instead of using plants with exceptionally high energy yields, we are converting low-energy food crops into ethanol, a low-energy fuel.

Only high-energy crops can become the savior of our huge transportation sector. The wellbeing of this sector is absolutely vital for the continuing functioning of world economies. Famines will result if we convert instead low-energy food crops into liquid fuels. There are not enough arable lands on this Earth to provide food for an additional three billion people during the next fifty years and grow simultaneously sufficient amounts of low-energy biomass for replacing petroleum as source for liquid motor fuels.

Substitution of petroleum with motor fuels derived from coal or oil shale is not sensible, either. These synthetic fuels will increase greenhouse gas emissions and will accelerate global warming. Therefore, there remains only one single choice for securing the supply of affordable transportation fuels; we must learn to convert high-energy biomass into standard motor fuels.

This will involve the development of new approaches and new technologies for finding, breeding, and growing high-energy crops on fallow and arid lands. We must protect tropical and primal forests and we must assure that arable lands are sustained properly. Arable lands will become scarce and must be protected from exploitation.

The world has huge areas of deserts and arid lands with exceptionally high solar irradiation. We must learn to grow biomass with high-energy yields on these ignored and neglected lands. We must develop new irrigation and cultivating technologies for arid areas and we must learn how to achieve high-energy biomass harvests without excessive water use and without the wasteful and expensive fertilizer runoff.

High-energy plants need plenty of sunshine. We must breed new high-energy plant hybrids and we must develop new agricultural techniques that are effective under these adverse conditions. We must prevent exploitation of forests across the world and we must find ways to protect and preserve tropical and primal forests.

It is mandatory that we bring the recent inflationary wave of food prices under control soon. It is important that we prevent any speculative manipulation of grain prices and that we avoid any irrational reactions to this artificial food crisis.

Above all, we must not blame the concept of renewable biofuels for the artificially created food crisis. Liquid fuels from biomass are our only hope for simultaneously controlling global overheating and preventing hyperinflation of liquid fuel prices.

If we fail to succeed in this crucial and fateful endeavor, we must prepare the world for the collapse of world economies and the disappearance of civilizations.

 In these days of economic strife, we are sitting on the edge of our seats waiting for biofuels to hit the corner gas station. Why it’s taking so long is another matter and we have no clear answer on how long its going to take for biofuels to be a viable option in our community. The difference between biofuels and fossil fuels is the amount of time an organic material has been dead. Biofuels can be produced from any biological carbon source. Most common sources are photosynthetic plants. Also a wide array of different fuels ranging from water to White Lightning. White lightning, of course, being Ethanol.

Using water with electrically charged metal plates submerged into the water produces hydrogen gas, which if ran into your intake manifold, can save you some gas. The internet is flooded with this hydrogen generator and manuals on how to build it and install it. Why car manufacturers are choosing other avenues is a mystery. There are cars being made that are electric and run on hydrogen fuel, however, there are not many stations around that carry hydrogen, so where ever you go, may be a one way trip. Ethanol is produced with corn. It takes a lot of energy to produce. If you went a 100 miles with a gas vehicle, you would need one-third more ethanol to go the same hundred miles. Since it takes so much to produce Ethanol it will not be cheap and it will eat up food resources and since we will be growing for fuel, not food, corn and wheat prices will increase. There is research ongoing trying to extract ethanol from non food crops. You also need a bigger tank to store the Ethanol and one that is not prone to corrosion. That coupled with stronger hoses and equipment needed to run this fuel will increase the price of the vehicle.

BioGas is gas produced by anaerobic digestion. Essentially, gas produced by rotting garbage. Landfills are covered with plastic then buried with a pipe sticking out to release the pressurized gas. If it is not stored or burned these gasses are a potent form of greenhouse gas. This gas can be used in a couple of different ways, such as heating and the production of electricity.

You can learn more about environmental issues and becoming green here or if this doesn’t work www.greenearthfriend.com

Why is it that stupid ideas find so many followers? European Governments, the US Federal Government, and an increasing number of US State Governments have issued legislation that requires the use of ethanol in cars.

Making ethanol from corn was promoted by the US agricultural lobby as the best approach for producing biofuels. None of the decision makers listened to the advice of scientists, who pointed out correctly, that the benefits of ethanol were minute. Ethanol is incapable of reducing consumption of petroleum-derived fuels and of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Almost all of the food producing acreage in the US must be converted to growing corn before a sizeable reduction in foreign petroleum imports can be expected.

For the agricultural lobby the financial rewards of the ethanol craze have been spectacular. When future prices of corn began to escalate, more and more farmers decided to plant corn in favor of other crops like soybean and wheat. Predictably, food prices started soaring.

Now we must deal with the sorry political mess that the ethanol subsidy of the US Federal Government has left behind. Poor countries have been hit hard with escalating prices for grains and other basic food staples. Protests are growing across the globe demanding price reductions or price controls. Demonstrations are stoking social unrest in many countries. Demands are growing to prohibit the production of biofuels altogether.

What originally began as an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and an attempt to reduce consumption of fossil fuels and petroleum, may instead be perceived as a worldwide failure of renewable biofuels. Such result would be unfortunate and ultimately disastrous.

We know for sure that petroleum reserves are getting scarce and will be depleted soon. We know for sure that global warming is caused by greenhouse gases produced by fossil fuel combustion. We know for sure that economies will begin to fail, when liquid motor fuels become scarce and unaffordable.

We must replace fossil petroleum sources with an alternate source for liquid fuels or world economies are doomed to fail and contract. Only biomass meets the requirements for such a new energy source. However, virtually all the biomass crops, which are being used, have one common shortcoming. Instead of using plants with exceptionally high energy yields, we are converting low-energy food crops into ethanol, a low-energy fuel.

Only high-energy crops can become the savior of our huge transportation sector. The wellbeing of this sector is absolutely vital for the continuing functioning of world economies. Famines will result if we convert instead low-energy food crops into liquid fuels. There are not enough arable lands on this Earth to provide food for an additional three billion people during the next fifty years and grow simultaneously sufficient amounts of low-energy biomass for replacing petroleum as source for liquid motor fuels.

Substitution of petroleum with motor fuels derived from coal or oil shale is not sensible, either. These synthetic fuels will increase greenhouse gas emissions and will accelerate global warming. Therefore, there remains only one single choice for securing the supply of affordable transportation fuels; we must learn to convert high-energy biomass into standard motor fuels.

This will involve the development of new approaches and new technologies for finding, breeding, and growing high-energy crops on fallow and arid lands. We must protect tropical and primal forests and we must assure that arable lands are sustained properly. Arable lands will become scarce and must be protected from exploitation.

The world has huge areas of deserts and arid lands with exceptionally high solar irradiation. We must learn to grow biomass with high-energy yields on these ignored and neglected lands. We must develop new irrigation and cultivating technologies for arid areas and we must learn how to achieve high-energy biomass harvests without excessive water use and without the wasteful and expensive fertilizer runoff.

High-energy plants need plenty of sunshine. We must breed new high-energy plant hybrids and we must develop new agricultural techniques that are effective under these adverse conditions. We must prevent exploitation of forests across the world and we must find ways to protect and preserve tropical and primal forests.

It is mandatory that we bring the recent inflationary wave of food prices under control soon. It is important that we prevent any speculative manipulation of grain prices and that we avoid any irrational reactions to this artificial food crisis.

Above all, we must not blame the concept of renewable biofuels for the artificially created food crisis. Liquid fuels from biomass are our only hope for simultaneously controlling global overheating and preventing hyperinflation of liquid fuel prices.

If we fail to succeed in this crucial and fateful endeavor, we must prepare the world for the collapse of world economies and the disappearance of civilizations.