Ethanol

I caught a few minutes last night of a report on alternative fuels on CNN.  They're saying it costs every bit as much energy to produce ethanol as the fuel it creates.  It sure is reeking havoc with food prices, using all that corn, and now with the flooding in the farm belt hundreds of thousands of acres of crops can't even be planted and the ones that were have been devastated by the flooding.

I think it was Brazil who is creating fuel from sugar cane, and they are not dependent on foreign oil. 

You would think that the gas stations would have to disclose just what percentage of ethanol is in the gas they sell. 

I agree.  My husband saw something similar on producing it and it said the same thing. I can't remember what he watched it on. 

Marsha:

I saw the percentage of ethanol in the gasoline posted on a gas pump at a filling station the other day.....I believe it said 10% if I am not mistaken.

"Winners walk out laughing; losers cry, 'Deal again!'" - Larry Gatlin & The Gatlin Brothers Band Political Advertisement Paid For and Approved by Tom Platt, Republican, for County Commission, District 1.

It's not ethanol that's driving up food prices...it's supply and demand.  Why does our government continue to subsidize farmers for NOT growing products?  It's this type of government intervention that always ruins a free market.

The demand is being driven up by the growing fuel crisis and the demand for corn to be turned into ethanol.

With the recent floods in the midwest, production is going to be way off creating an even shorter supply then what already existed.  Back in my childhood home where the flooding is limited, bottom lands used for corn production still haven't been planted due to the excess amounts of rainfall.......the fields are just too muddy to plant.

You are correct, it's supply and demand, but since humans have to eat in order to exist I was merely focusing on the rising cost of food which is going to spike later in the year. 

Buy your cornflakes now, you may not be able to afford them in nine months.

Thanks Tom for pointing that out.  With VWwifes informative contribution and yours I will now start paying attention to where I get gas over and above the price per gallon.

is it the manufacturers, distributors or sellers percentage that you see on the pump?

The one on the pump is what the sellers ...from what I understand.  So you could still have 10% from the manufacturer & distributor = 30% by the time it goes into your tank.

http://www.tampabay.com/news/business/energy/article640527.ece 

I hate to argue with you vwwife since I only know about this what I have read prompted by the discussions on Myclaysun.  If you think about it though,  the manufacturer would be the one to blend the 10% ethanol into the gasoline.  The distributor distributes and the retailer has it pumped into his facility by a truck; I don't see them being able to alter the gas mixture at all at that point.  So, I would say that there is only 10% or less in the blend.

Ethanol Profile•

Florida Labeling Laws - Label Requirements (5F-2.003):

* Fuel containing ethanol must be labeled to identify the amount. The label must appear on the upper 50 percent of the dispenser in letters 1/2” in height andwith a 1/16” stroke.

Label Phrasing:* “contains 10% or less ethanol” or “1-10% ethanol” 

• Number of Retail E85 Stations: 7

• Ethanol Incentives - Grant Assistance—(2006 Florida Energy Act):

* Through the 2006 Florida Energy Act, grant funds were provided for several ethanol projects, including; $2.5 million for a proposed citrus-waste-based biorefinery, $2.5 million for a project proposing to use biomass to co-produce ethanol and electricity, $2.5 million to refurbish a shuttered ethanol facility and $990,000 to determine the technical feasibility of using Florida sugarcane waste as a feedstock for ethanol production.

• Fuel Tax - Gasoline and Ethanol Blends: 15.3 cents/gallon•

Fuel Formulations - Broward, Dade, Duval, Hillsborough, Palm Beach, and Pinellas counties sell 7.8 RVP gasoline from June 1 through September 15. All other counties sell 9.0 RVP gasoline during the summer. Ethanol blends of 10 percent receive a 1 lb. RVP waiver.

• Estimated Total Corn Production: 2,460,000 bushels (2006)

• Estimated Total Sugar Cane Production: 13,500,000 tons (2006) Petroleum Supply (Upstream)

• Crude Oil Proved Reserves: 68 million barrels (2003)—ranked 16th—Less than 1 percent

• Crude Oil Production: 8,000 barrels per day (2004)—ranked 19th—Less than 1 percent• Total Producing Oil Wells: 70 (2004)

• Total Rigs in Operation: 1 (2004) 

Transportation• Major Pipelines- Crude Oil: Genesis, Sunniland- Product: Everglades, Central Florida 

Refining and Marketing (Downstream)• Refineries: 0

• Gasoline Stations: 9,215 outlets (2005) or about 5.5 percent of the nation’s total

Source:   http://www.ethanol.org/index.php?id=81&parentid=25

Thanks for the info read44... I am just passing along the info my husband found out at a training seminar last week in auto technology. 

I think the government tells us only what they want us to hear.

As a person who used to be in the business of retailing fuel products to the public, I can say positively that whatever is advertised on the pump is exactly what you are putting in your vehicle.  The government is very strict about that.  Fuel pumps are tested regularly for the amount and type of product that the customer spends his hard earned money for.  Certainly, there is a plus/minus variable in the equation but if the pump doesn't dispense within that amount, the pump must be shut down and a technician called immediately.  The fines aren't that cheap either.  Also, fuel products are classified as hazardous material so they are strictly monitored as to what parameters they fall.  I'm sure firemen and hazardous waste personnel wouldn't want to be called for an emergency thinking they are facing a certain situation when they are unknowingly facing another.

 Believe what you want but the truth isn't that farfetched.

It's nice to hear from someone who actually has experience with this so I don't have to worry about what is going into my gas tank.  Of all the things I have to spend money on to fix or maintain a vehicle is the worst.   I have regular gas stations I go to in different areas so if I ever end up with a problem with my vehicle due to the gas I will at least have an idea of where it came from.

Thanks for removing one worry from my brain.

Thanks Walt.  I'm glad to hear from someone who know this area very well! I actually spoke to a friend of mine last night who drives for an fuel distributor in Jax. He said the same thing that you did.  So talking to the two of you makes me feel better also.

Thanks again.

I'm glad I could help.