Cars Using Cellulosic E85 Have Lowest CO2 Emissions
WorldAutoSteel has released a 2nd iteration of the automotive materials parametric Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) model, which allows for broader evaluations of automotive materials, powertrains, fuels, and vehicle total energy consumed. The study showed that celluosic E85 is the best fuel to reduce greenhouse gas emissions as compared to all other alternatives, including hybrid technology and fuel cells. This phase 2 LCA model is a successor to the Phase 1 model and was released under the expertise of Dr. Roland Geyer of the University of California’s Bren School for Environmental Science.
“This report reinforces the promise of ethanol as the cleanest, greenest fuel for our cars even when compared to hybrid and fuel cell technology,” said Tom Buis, CEO of Growth Energy.” Today’s ethanol plants are 60 percent better than gasoline and cellulosic ethanol can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by even more – as much as 86 percent. Unfortunately, an arbitrary government cap on the amount of ethanol that can be blended with gasoline is stifling the development and commercialization of second-generation biofuels and needs to be increased. Further, we need automakers to manufacture more flex-fuel vehicles so they can utilize higher blends of ethanol. These common sense solutions can speed up the introduction of cellulosic ethanol to the marketplace, making America’s homegrown fuel even cleaner and greener, while creating green collar jobs and reducing our dependence on foreign oil.”
The Phase 2 model incorporated several new features including adding magnesium and several composites to the materials that may now be evaluated for their emissions from manufacturing through use and end-of-life; advanced powertrains including diesel and fuel cells; the ability to evaluate the impact of biofuels and other ag sources for the production of these fuels; and the capability to produce an analysis of total energy consumed over a car’s life cycle to compliment the total greenhouse gas emission analysis.
You can download the model here.
5 Comments
Chip Daigle
The Ethanol getting 60% or higher Reduction in Carbon Emissions shoud be labeled as CE (Clean Ethanol.) Ethanol subsidies on Corn should be removed and the subsidies should be given instead to CE85 encouraging Americans to use it and not Regular Gasoline. Of course this would also encourage the American manufacturers to make all cars E85. Corn Ethanol has served us well but it time to move on to making Ethanol from Sugarcane, Sweet Sorghum, Energy Cane, Jatropha, Algae and Cellulose.
To the Corn Farmers, I say trade Corn for Clean Ethanol from foriegn countries. Demand for Corn stays up. Poor countries Economies are improved. We get cleaner Ethanol. Our Big City Pollution is reduced 60%. We are a more Flexible and stronger country. We can thump our noses when the Mid East jacks up the price because of a fake crisis. We can flip the switch to Higher Ethanol blends when Oil and Gas finally peaks and starts to decline.
Jeffrey Goettemoeller
I would add that using ethanol in optimized engines will increase its benefit even more, taking advantage of a high octane rating. Life cycle studies usually look at use in non-optimized flex-fuel engines. But optimization for ethanol will boost fuel economy and in turn lower CO2 emmissions. This optimization technology is ready to be implimented on a wide scale.
Bobby Fontaine
The people who did that study might want to read the article at the link below before they do too much celebrating
http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/113486
Bobby Fontaine
and this one too
http://www.energytribune.com/articles.cfm?aid=2194
Robert S. Mears
One thing that will help ethanol sales and usage is the ability to use the biofuel in regular gasoline engines. To that end, we now have a company working with a company in China that has developed an additive allowing 85% ethanol, 12% gasoline and 3% additive. We are now looking for partners to bring this to market.
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