Ethanol
Ethanol is a liquid alcohol that is blended with gasoline to produce a fuel that is friendlier to the environment than gasoline and can be used in virtually any gasoline-powered vehicle manufactured after 1980. Most gasoline-powered vehicles can run on a blend consisting of gasoline and up to 10 percent ethanol. Known as "E-10 blend," it is available at more than 1000 service stations across Canada.
Some vehicles are specially manufactured or converted to operate on an ethanol blend that contains up to 85 percent ethanol and at least 15 percent gasoline. (The 15 percent gasoline is needed to assist in engine starting because pure ethanol is difficult to ignite in cold weather.) This E-85 blend cannot be used in standard gasoline engines, but the engines designed to run with a high ethanol blend can also operate using gasoline when necessary. E-85 is presently used by some organizations with large vehicle fleets, but it is not yet commercially available in Canada.
What is ethanol?
Ethanol alcohol is made of oxygen, hydrogen and carbon and is obtained from the fermentation of sugar or converted starch contained in grains and other agricultural or agri-forest feedstocks. In Canada, ethanol is presently made principally from corn and wheat, using a milling process. Ethanol can be processed into industrial ethanol or fuel-grade ethanol. Research into technology to produce ethanol from non-food sources is advancing rapidly and is close to commercialization.
Fuel ethanol, which is sometimes referred to as "gasohol," has been distilled and dehydrated to create a high-octane, water-free alcohol. All water must be removed because a water-alcohol mixture cannot dissolve in gasoline. Fuel ethanol is made unfit for drinking by adding a small amount of a noxious substance such as gasoline.
Video on ethanol
| 
OEE Home
