Ethanol Facts

Published: Saturday, February 12, 2011 at 12:18 a.m.
Last Modified: Saturday, February 12, 2011 at 12:18 a.m.
I would like to add some facts to the continuing ethanol discussions.
A gallon of ethanol only contains about 65 percent of the energy of a gallon of gasoline.
It cannot be pumped in pipelines because of its corrosive nature, it must trucked from the distiller and blended at a local facility. Blenders receive a $0.51 per gallon credit from the government.
The wholesale price for ethanol in Florida is $2.174 per gallon, but the 10 percent ethanol in your tank will cost you $3.17 per gallon. You can expect to take about a 3 percent or more hit on your mileage.
E85 pricing is more outrageous. Pricing at a Central Florida station is $3.17 per gallon for regular gasoline (with 10 percent ethanol) and $2.74 per gallon for E85 (85 percent ethanol). To be equivalent on an energy basis it should sell for about $2.31 per gallon. Also, if your car burns E85, expect a large drop in mileage.
Finally, without a subsidy (your tax dollars), no one would ever produce ethanol from corn or other grasses, all of which require substantial amounts of nitrogen for reasonable production. The nitrogen generally is derived from ammonia produced from natural gas. I doubt anyone can really claim that to be renewable. There are not enough arable acres in the U.S. to support corn ethanol without affecting food prices.
JOHN H. SURBER
Chemical Engineer (retired)
Lakeland