Ford Researchers Make the Case for Ethanol and Methanol Blends
Research confirms what is already widely known by engine designers, race engine builders and hot-rodders that higher octane means higher combustion chamber pressures and higher power output. Higher power output enables down-sizing of engines with concomitant gains in gasoline consumption reductions (from efficiency gains as well as direct substitution of ethanol for gasoline).
Strangely (considering this is widely known in the auto manufacturing industry and in auto racing applications), the greater fuel efficiency possible with ethanol has never been considered by Dept of Energy in evaluating ethanol's ability to reduce gasoline consumption or GHG emissions reductions. Three MIT scientists designed an engine that will obtain 30% improvement in fuel consumption over typical ICE - at about 1/4th the cost of a hybrid automobile (read: "more rapid adoption by consumers"
while using ony 5% ethanol and 95% gasoline. Thus, the designers significantly increase the impact of ethanol using this engine (i.e. about 20x).
Actually, this isn't even news to the Dept. of Energy (do you hear me Dr. Wang?), in 1998 the Dept of Energy conducted an "Ethanol Vehicle Challenge" which was participated in by teams of Engineering students from over a dozen Colleges and Universities in the U.S. and Canada. The objective was to optimize an stock Chevrolet Malibu to run on E85 (85% ehtanol fuel). The results? all the teams (save one which dropped out of the challenge) improved the fuel efficiency of the stock Malibu running on straigth gasoline. The top three teams achieved fuel efficiency improvements of 13% to 15%. And this is running on E85. (The MIT engine does better than this using far less ethanol) But this was done without such developments as Direct Injection and variable valve timing and duration - by college engineering students and WITHOUT DOWNSIZING of the engines (!).
Wonder if anybody over at DoE cares about optimizing the use of ethanol and multiplying the benefits derived from the use of ethanol? greater fuel efficiency with ethanol increases the reduction of gasoline/oil consumtion which will help to further reduce the price of oil/gasoline for U.S. drivers - which will help our economy still struggling to get out of this Republican Dystopia.
http://newenergyandfuel.com/http:/newenergyandfuel/com/2012/04/09/ford-makes-a-case-for-ethanol-and-methanol-blends/
A team of researchers from Ford Motor Company are asserting in a paper published in the journal Fuel that “substantial societal benefits” would arrive for consumers by using higher volume blends of ethanol to leverage the alcohol’s inherent high octane rating to produce ethanol-gasoline blends with higher octane numbers.
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The two alcohols are not equal to gasoline. Detractors focus on the lower energy density than gasoline, potentially higher or lower vapor pressures, altered distillation properties, and potential for water-induced phase separation. These are all valid points – easily compensated for by proper engineering.
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Ford is making the case, with a hard scientific, peer reviewed, repeatable study what racing folks, hot rodders, engineers, and smart consumers with high compression engines have known for years.
The high octane rating of ethanol could be used in a mid-level ethanol blend to increase the minimum octane number (Research Octane Number, RON) of regular-grade gasoline.
Ford suggests that the societal benefit comes from automakers having an opportunity to improve their engines to a higher compression ratio. The compression ratio is a comparison of the volume of the open cylinder to the cylinder volume when the piston has squeezed the cylinder to the smallest volume. The same amount of fuel and air squeezed into a smaller space sets up a more energetic fuel burn that equals more mechanical energy out and less heat lost.(more)
also see: Ford researchers suggest using higher ethanol blends to boost the minimum octane number of regular-grade gasoline
Using higher volume blends of ethanol to leverage the alcohol’s inherent high octane rating to produce ethanol-gasoline blends with higher octane numbers could yield “substantial societal benefits”, according to a team of researchers from Ford Motor Company.
Currently, ethanol is blended into a gasoline blendstock formulated with lower octane rating such that the net octane rating of the resulting final blend is unchanged from historical levels. However, the high octane rating of ethanol could be used in a mid-level ethanol blend to increase the minimum octane number (Research Octane Number, RON) of regular-grade gasoline, J.E. Anderson and colleagues suggest in a new paper published in the journal Fuel.
Ethanol—and methanol—have some performance issues in gasoline blends, such as lower energy density than gasoline, potentially higher or lower vapor pressures, altered distillation properties, and potential for water-induced phase separation. However, they also offer a high research octane number (RON) and motor octane number (MON) as compared to gasoline. The alcohols also have a greater latent heat of vaporization than gasoline, which contributes to their higher RON values and provides additional charge cooling in direct-injection (DI) engines.
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Higher RON in the fuel blend would enable greater thermal efficiency in future engines through higher compression ratio (CR) and/or more aggressive turbocharging and downsizing, and in current engines on the road today through more aggressive spark timing under some driving conditions.(more)
= new reply since forum marked as read
Last edited Sat Jan 26, 2013, 06:42 PM - Edit history (2)
to operate on ethanol blends of say 15%. also, their biggest fear is that people will wake up and say: "Well, if cars can run on ethanol, why not add methanol to the mix. It's far cheaper and much more plentiful (make it from natural gas and replace half the gasoline burned in cars in about 15 years - that is, if we had a real "petroleum security plan" . The cost of gasoline would drop like a rock. (NOt just gasoline but of all products with petroleum in their composition or which have transportation as part of their cost. I.E. just about every fucking product we buy!)
Of course, the impact on our energy security would be spectacular and worth even more than the tremendous boost to the economy by the enormous savings in expenditures for light transportation fuel. That savings would mean more money available for people to spend on other things - it would be an enormous stimulus for the economy.
The American oil industry can't tell Honda what to do where ethanol is widely available, in Brazil.
Consequently, Honda is supplying the Brazilian market Flex Fuel Civics that get mileage just as good on ethanol blends (from E20 to E100) as the gasoline-only Civics get on gasoline.
Ha-ha-ha. The jokes on us!! Thank you Dept. of Energy (for ignoring the results of your own Ethanol Vehicle Challenge, 1998, Ford Motor co. experts, MIT scientists, engine designers and builders, and racing enthusiasts)!
http://e85.whipnet.net/flex.cars/honda.ffv.html
http://green.autoblog.com/2006/09/26/honda-flex-fuel-vehicle-system-for-introduction-in-brazil-in-200/
(emphasis my own)
The new Honda system adapts to different ethanol-to-gasoline
ratios by estimating the concentration of ethanol in the ethanol-gasoline mix
in the fuel tank based on measurements of exhaust gas concentration in the vehicle's
exhaust system. This provides the flexibility to adapt to ethanol-to-gasoline
ratios of between 20 percent and 100 percent, while achieving outstanding fuel
economy and dynamic performance on a par with a 100 percent gasoline-powered
vehicle.
This carburetor will retrofit most American V-8's, though increase in fuel flow may be required.
