Ethanol Fuels

Introduction

Did You Know?

That Brazil has used ethanol to eliminate the need for imported oil! - Ethanol has replaced 40% of Brazil's gasoline consumption [3].

That carbon nanotubes are being considered for hydrogen storage. - See what other ways scientists are considering for hydrogen storage.

Ethanol: A Greener Source of Fuel

Clipart of a Field and smoke stacks (taken from MS Office)This section gives a brief introduction to the politics and the history of ethanol fuels in Canada and the United States.

In the USA and Canada over the last decade, ethanol has become increasingly popular as a method to reduce both greenhouse gases and the dependence on foreign sources of oil.  Many politicians and scientists back ethanol as an environmentally friendly alternative to gasoline and most studies have shown that it reduces harmful emissions of chemicals such as carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, particulate matter and methane [1].

The idea of using ethanol as a fuel is not very new when compared to hybrid vehicles or hydrogen fuel cell technology. In fact, Henry Ford, in creating his Model-T, assumed that ethanol would be the major source of fuel for the automobile. However, cost constraints forced ethanol out of the spotlight until recently when gas prices soared and environmental issues became more pressing [2]. Ethanol has been the subject of several ad campaigns both in Canada and the USA, the video below was created by the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association in 2006.  However, not everyone is in agreement about ethanol being a viable alternative to gasoline.

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Can you really make ethanol from fish? Well, lets see how ethanol is made to find out.