Ethanol Cars
Ethanol is one of a number of alternative fuels that have been developed to try to reduce the dependence on foreign oil and improve the environmental impact of gasoline and diesel fuels. Ethanol is a grain based alcohol that is the active ingredient in most common alcoholic beverages. The main difference between your glass of vodka and ethanol … Keep Reading → fuel is that the fuel is distilled to a much higher percentage of alcohol; typically about 95%. Ethanol has been allowed to be mixed with gasoline in most cars for years. In January 2011, the Environmental Protection Agency increased the allowed percentage of ethanol from 10 percent to 15 percent. Ethanol is also used as the primary fuel source (85% ethanol) in flexible fuel vehicles that have been designed to accept the fuel. The proponents of ethanol cite that it is a renewable resource and burns relatively cleanly. Those opposed point to the fact that it is using resources that would otherwise be used as food. Another criticism is that ethanol reduces gas mileage because it produces less energy.
