Research unveils ethanol's role in future fuel efficiency

Ethanol Producer Magazine
By Kris Bevill January 11, 2012

The latest round of vehicles being introduced by automakers at the 2012 North American International Auto Show, held Jan. 9-22 in Detroit, include several hybrid and electric plug-in models, but many more new vehicles are featuring fuel efficient engines as manufacturers work to meet increasingly stringent fuel economy standards.

Their efforts in this area were applauded by Roland Hwang, transportation program director for the Natural Resources Defense Council, who said in remarks delivered to attendees on Jan. 10 that while the NRDC believes electric drive trains are the future of vehicle technology, more than 80 percent of the vehicles driven in 2025 will still be gasoline-powered. Therefore, in order to meet the 54.5 miles-per-gallon standard currently proposed for 2025, gasoline-fueled vehicles will require technology modifications, such as the addition of turbochargers or direct injection technology.

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Fuel Testing Reveals Higher Octane in Ethanol, Adding Improved Performance Benefits

Biofuels Journal
Date Posted: January 10, 2012

Colwich, KS—Last July, it might have seemed surprising when the government announced ambitious plans to raise corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards to 54.5 MPG by 2025.

However, across the map, from Detroit to Japan, the automotive industry said that the seemingly impossible MPG number was an attainable goal.

What’s more, the bulk of the heavy lifting to get there will be accomplished by utilizing high-efficiency internal combustion engines that deliver lower C02 emissions per mile.

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New Fuel Economy Standards May Benefit Ethanol

DomesticFuel.com
Posted by Joanna Schroeder – April 1st, 2010

Today the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Energy (DOE) signed a joint final rule that establishes greenhouse gas emission standards and corporate fuel economy standards for light duty vehicles for model years 2012-2016. This National Fuel Efficiency Policy requires passenger cars and light trucks to get an overall average of 35.5 miles per gallon (mpg) by 2016 while cars are expected to average 39 mpg and trucks will be required to get 30 mpg. According to the current administration, this measure is expected to save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the life of the program.

However, we could actually reduce oil imports and emissions even more under this program by using ethanol.

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President Obama Announces National Fuel Efficiency Policy

U.S. EPA
Release date: 05/19/2009
Contact Information: THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary 202-456-2580

WASHINGTON, DC – President Obama today – for the first time in history – set in motion a new national policy aimed at both increasing fuel economy and reducing greenhouse gas pollution for all new cars and trucks sold in the United States. The new standards, covering model years 2012-2016, and ultimately requiring an average fuel economy standard of 35.5 mpg in 2016, are projected to save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the life of the program with a fuel economy gain averaging more than 5 percent per year and a reduction of approximately 900 million metric tons in greenhouse gas emissions. This would surpass the CAFE law passed by Congress in 2007 required an average fuel economy of 35 mpg in 2020.

“In the past, an agreement such as this would have been considered impossible,” said President Obama. “That is why this announcement is so important, for it represents not only a change in policy in Washington, but the harbinger of a change in the way business is done in Washington. As a result of this agreement, we will save 1.8 billion barrels of oil over the lifetime of the vehicles sold in the next five years. And at a time of historic crisis in our auto industry, this rule provides the clear certainty that will allow these companies to plan for a future in which they are building the cars of the 21st century.”

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