Ethanol

Ethanol, better known as ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol, is a colorless substance with a characteristic agreeable odor. It is an alcohol fuel made from the sugars found in grains. Ethanol is drinkable and active in beer, wine, and spirits. It has been used for centuries as the drinkable form of alcohol. Contrary to what most people think, ethanol is not poisonous. It is edible unlike its relative methanol which is found in wood poison. Ethanol is also a high-performance fuel which is why Henry Ford called the alcohol substance "the fuel of the future" after creating his Model T. Even though it was much better for the environment than gasoline, oil-companies disagreed and ethanol did not reappear until the oil crisis of the 1970's. The US now uses over 15 billion gallons of ethanol blended petrol a year, and many more blends are still being tested. Ethanol is approved by most all car manufacturers and even recommended by some. That does not, however, mean it is widely used. The US alone consumes about 146 billion gallons of gasoline a year, 400 million gallons a day. Most gas stations don't even offer the purchase of ethanol for your car, much less do our local power plants prefer the use of ethanol to heat our homes and turn on our lights. Even after coming to the conclusion that ethanol does much more in keeping our atmosphere and planet safe, we still choose gasoline over the efficient alcohol fuel.

Ethanol is a much cleaner fuel as well. For example; it is a renewable fuel made from plants - which are in abundance across our planet. It is also not a fossil-fuel which means making and using it does not increase the greenhouse effect. The blends of ethanol can be used in all car engines that normally use gasoline with no modifications needed to be made. Once its lifespan is up, it can be laid to rest without any harmful affects on our environment. It can drastically reduce exhaust emissions and emissions of hydrocarbons that contribute significantly to the disintegration of the ozone layer. Because it is an octane enhancer it can cut the discharge of cancer-causing benzene and butadiene by more then 50%. With it's high octane rating, the fuel does not burn as quickly as gasoline. Fuel like gasoline that burns too quickly makes the engine "knock". One acre can produce enough ethanol to drive even a gas guzzling SUV 5000 miles. Ethanol is obviously a much healthier fuel, not only for humans but for our cars as well, than the petrol we are accustomed to.

Information collected from http://journeytoforever.org/ethanol.html