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Isn't a large part of ethanol it's use as a fuel additive that it boosts octane and is relatively cheap? Compared to leaded gasoline it seems very "green".
by Forge36 1y ago
Isn't a large part of ethanol it's use as a fuel additive that it boosts octane and is relatively cheap? Compared to leaded gasoline it seems very "green".
- MangoToupe 1y agoTurning solar power into something we use to destroy the environment doesn't strike me as very "green" at all. Quite the opposite. I can't imagine it's a very efficient use of money, either. Granted, we will likely always need to do this, but where was the need at this absurd scale? Most of our heavy industry runs on diesel anyway.
- asdff 1y agoIt goes full circle: where does the carbon in the biofuel come from? The plant. Where does the carbon in the plant come from? The air. This is why biofuels are carbon neutral in theory at least. There is of course loss in process like in most things. In terms of a use of money it is a good way to subsidize the american corn farmer. Whether you believe that is worthwhile depends on your views of WWIII.
- Qem 1y agoThe devil is in the details. Where did the land used to plant it came from? What was there before? Deforestation emits a lot of CO2. Fertilizer needs fossil fuels to be manufactured, tractors and harvesters burn diesel, et cetera.
- MangoToupe 1y agoWe could also just feed the food to people who want to kill us and maybe they'll want to kill us less.
- AnimalMuppet 1y agoLeaded gasoline hasn't been a thing for decades now.
- strongpigeon 1y agoExcept in general aviation, where lead free alternatives are just coming out of the approval pipeline.
- imtringued 1y agoYou literally proved Forge36's point. Ethanol is the replacement for lead in gasoline.
- AnimalMuppet 1y agoUnleaded gasoline was unleaded long before ethanol was added. So, no, I didn't prove his point.
- Forge36 1y agoThe history of ethanol in gas is quiet old. Per https://www.eia.gov/kids/history-of-energy/timelines/ethanol.php https://www.eia.gov/kids/history-of-energy/timelines/ethanol... It looks like it usage of ethanol as an additive started increasing around the same time lead was being phased out.
- Qem 1y agoMost crops beyond sugarcane in tropical areas lack biomass output high enough to compensate the need for fossil fuel inputs and land use emissions.