E85 Ethanol

I'm all for being green and saving the earth, but the more I hear about E85 ethanol, the less it makes sense to me.

E85 is basically gasoline, a flex fuel, that made from corn. It is made from the kernels of corn, the only part that can be more easily converted into a fuel blend.

Here is the problem: it is inefficient.

Ethanol has less than 70% of the efficiency of gasoline. So the more ethanol is in the blend, say E85 (85% ethanol) compared to E10 (1o% ethanol), the less efficient it is. Plus, heavier concentrations of ethanol can more easily damage a car's engine. That's why most tanks that can support an ethanol blend are only made for E10 blends.

Have you seen the price of corn today? It is 2 ears for a $1.00 at the supermarket! How many ears of corn do you think it would take to fill up a tank? Although, analysts say it is worth getting ethanol only if gas is more than $4.00/gallon if your car has already been converted for such a fuel. It is more expensive to produce ethanol, convert the corn, ship it in big trucks, and grow it. Mass production of ethanol could possibly cause a food shortage. Some corn growers lost a lot of their corn in the floods and other natural disasters. Look at what happened to rice. If there is a major disaster to corn crops, those dependent on ethanol will share in paying the price.

Some other food products are being looked at to make ethanol blends. Sugar ethanol is the next big thing, but I don't really know that much about it yet to have an opinion about it's efficiency or know how sweet of a deal it really is.