At 03:12 AM 1/10/00 +0000, Eric wrote:
>.... Has anyone had any experience on running alcohol fuelled vehicles - or
alcohol/gasoline mix.
By now I suspect we all have. It's called "gasohol" and is generally a 10%
mix of alcohol in gasoline available at most gas stations in the US,
especially in metropolitain areas, and often to the exclusion of straight
100% gasoline.
>Do you think it is practical to get a licence, distill your own alcohol
and use it to fuel your car?
I don't think you even need a license to manufacture alcohol, but you may
need a permit to sell it.
>I quote:
>....
>"You can make alcohol in your backyard, .... you may even conclude (within
some circumstances) that it's not practical, but it can be done."
To which, at 01:11 PM 1/9/00 EST, REwald9535@aol.com responded:
>....
>eric@erickson.on.net writes:
>....
>.... but it takes more energy to make alcohol than you get out of it. So
unless you have a still that runs on air this would be a net loser.
Delete now if you don't want a physics lesson with sociology mixed in. It
does take more energy to make almost any fuel than you get out of it
(including atomic power). However, the primary energy source is usually
solar energy which is indeed as free as air, and from there the energy runs
downhill throughout the process until you have your fuel. Along the way
the energy consumed in processing is considerably less than the energy
content of the end fuel. In the case of crude oil it may have started with
buried biomass derived largely from solar energy. In the case of grain
alchohol it starts with agricultural biomass, also derived largely from
solar energy. In either case, the refining processing uses only a small
amount of the energy contained in the starting feedstock.
In today's economy the production of alcohol from grain or other
agricultural products is a little more expensive (capital investment plus
labor) than producing gasoline from crude oil. As such, to promote the
conservation of crude oil through the use of alcohol the government
subsidizes the production lf alcohol. The most obvious way this is done
(but not the only subsidy) is by eliminating the federal motor fuel tax on
the alcohol content at the gas pump, which seems to be almost enough to
offset the cost difference. Beware that alcohol has only about 1/2 as much
energy per gallon as gasoline, so when you get 10% gasohol at the pump you
are buying about 5% less energy in your motor fuel, but usually not getting
a 5% discount (sometimes 2%-3% discount), so the fuel companies are making
money on the deal, which is why they do it.
The manufacture of alcohol in large qualtities for fuel is well understood
and indeed almost anyone can do it. The capital investment to produce
alcohol from grain is far less than for producing it from oil, so it is the
path of choice for the small operator. Many farmers (large fuel consumers)
have alcohol stills on their own property and use them to produce their own
motor fuel from their own home grown feed stock. The primary incentive
here is to cut out all of the middle men, markups and profit margins so the
fuel energy produced is substantially less expensive to the farmer than
gasoline or diesel fuel. In the end there is often some extra fuel left
over that can be sold to help cash flow, but that is usually not as
profitable as selling the feedstock (grain), so the farmer's primary
business is still producing grain for sale (or consumption) and not alcohol.
Those businesses that do produce primarily alcohol for fuel are usually not
farmers, and are almost always subsidized in some way by the government.
This trend is likely to continue as long as tillable farm land and labor
remain expensive and it's still viable to drill a hole in the ground. So,
if you're interrested in making your own alcohol for motor fuel you had
best have a ready supply of cheap biomass and/or be looking for your "fair
share" of the government subsidies. OTOH, if you're convinced the world is
coming to an end and you just want to be energy self-sufficient, then maybe
cost is not a primary obstruction.
Barney Gaylord
1958 MGA with an attitude
(and acccess to a gas station right down the street)
http://www.ntsource.com/~barneymg
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