Can the increased use of ethanol lower gas prices?
373802
Eventually, the demand for oil will continue to increase and the supply will continue the decrease.  The only practical solution is to move towards alternative fuel.
347626
Renewable fuels association (ethanolrfa.org)
512284
No, but what helps lower gas prices is when you buy gas from a company that doesn't buy their gas from the middle east. Then, those other stations are forced to lower prices.
492014
1. Ethanol burns cleaner, without all the pollutants associated with petroleum products.  BY adding ethanol to gasoline, the percentage of petroleum related pollutants goes down.\n\n2. Ethanol is a renewable resource. Petroleum isn't.
18599
I don't think we will see gas at that level ever again. I'd expect that alternative energy sources could be developed but by the time they are, inflation will have raised prices too.\n\nWired currently has a story on why high gas prices may be better for the United States. It may be worth reading.
29418
Ethanol is bad and creates many nasty acids that wear away the journal bearing babbits, etc.  Many materials cannot stand up to the increase acidity present when burning higher percentages of ethanol. (Boy i hope i don't mean methanol instead of ethanol.  You might want to double check me there!)\n\nCNG can ONLY be used on SUPERCHARGED diesel engines.  To date, there are no SUPERCHARGED automotive diesel engines made.  The only way to get CNG into a diesel engine is to use very large superchargers which run mechanically off the crankshaft to ensure enough air-fuel mixture gets into the engine.  See Waukesha for stationary CNG products.  Traditionally, many diesel/CNG power plants run on CNG most of the time to save $.  \n\nCNG is GREAT for normally aspirated automotive spark-ignition engines.  It may produce less peak power, but the cylinder wear is REDUCED, oil contamination REDUCED--the engine runs SO MUCH CLEANER it is unbelievable.  Combustion chambers remain spotless and spark plugs stay clean.  CNG evaporators need a heat source, so in cold climates you may have to have a preheater.\n\nYou may be able to increase compression ratio when building up an automotive conversion--but don't overdo it.  I know plenty of CNG trucks that end up blowing a head gasket because people have a lead foot.  You could probably run a 9.0.  The best engines to use are V-8 carbureted truck engines.  \n\nTotal fleets of frozen food delivery trucks have been converted to CNG--but none has a diesel engine--they are all gasoline type engines.  So they do use them in trucks.  \n\nCNG will run out fast in your automotive application.  CNG must be stored in a gas phase, which means by the cubic foot.  It is not practical usually to build CNG storage into a car, and check with your Dept. of Transportation on explosion hazards--it may be illegal in some cases to carry so much cubic feet of explosive gas on a car or in a non-rated tank.  The heating value, i.e. energy per cubic foot of fuel is far less than gasoline, and less than propane. \n\nThe most practical conversions for cars are propane kits.  They are very simple: pressure regulator, evaporator, and some kind of throttle linkage.  You will get a few more miles per bottle of propane than CNG.  Both propane and CNG keep engines spotlessly clean.  Be sure to start with a clean engine and be sure that the valves have valve seats in the heads.  Exhaust gases can run the valves a bit hotter than when burning gasoline because of unburnt hydrocarbons in the exhaust--if your air-fuel ratio is right, you will never have that problem with CNG or LPG.
202996
I have! Oil prices go down and gas goes up. Supplies increase the price at the pump goes up. The 2nd biggest oil deposit in the world comes under U.S. control.... You get the idea. Enough is enough. His friends have all made a buck on this insanity, let's go back to $1.00 a gallon.
642201
Making the fuel price going to high to keep on driving... :(
389796
lower gas prices!!!!!!!
648748
I don't think all the "experts" are in agreement on the benefits of Ethanol blending.  It burns cleaner, so that helps the environment, but from what I have read, the energy required to produce Ethanol is equal to the energy you create by burning it.  Typically we burn fossil fuels in the Ethanol creation process, so other than propping up the corn industry, we haven't gained a thing.  So in answer to your question, are Toyota and Honda doing anything with Ethanol, unless they can cheaply modify their cars to burn gas and/or ethanol, I doubt if they'll do anything with it. If we pass laws to forcibly raise the amount of Ethanol consumption in the US, that might force the Japanese car manufacturers to accommodate Ethanol.
595004
can you lower the gas prices then please?!?!?! lol
654418
How about a friggin car you can run on food waste?  I'm tired of paying rich bastards who play price fixing games making money off me.  Ethanol or Methanol sound like a better alternative if we can all start making our own fuel without blowing up a few city blocks.\n\nSaw a news bit about a water-fueled motor the other day...\n\nJust read that answer above.  170 miles on a cell?!?  Are you freakin' kidding me?!?  My 113hp/69ft. lb motorcycle with a 4.5 gal tank does over 200 miles!  AND, it does wheelies!
145571
The have.  It is called ethanol, and you can get it from corn, hay, or other nearly-infinitely renewable sources.\n\nIt is just not as popular, yet.
1056073
It is a real concern, but whenever someone makes a prediction about when a country of the world will reach peak oil output, they do so with what then is considered a researve.  As the cost of a barrel of oil increases, sources for oil that were once not considered a researve then become on because at that cost it is economically viable to recover it.  With the recent spike in oil prices, North America can now clasify the tar sands in Canada and the oil shales in Colorado oil researves, and that being the case, it is estimated that in the US alone, we now have more economically recoverable oil then Saudi Arabia, the worlds largest exporter.  As the price continues to increase, other marginal sources will become economically viable.  Sooner or later, we will reach a point where there simply isn't enough oil available for any price, but that is still a ways off yet.  I believe that before we reach that point, oil will be more expensive then alternate fuel sources.  Through simple economics, I believe that people will begin using these alternate fuels simply because they are less expensive.  I believe that the high cost of oil will spawn invention and inovation into the energy sector, and I believe that has already begun.  We are working on increasing production of biodiesels and ethenol, and there is increased research into fuel cells and electric autos.  I think the future lies in hydrogen burning technology personally.  We already have engines that burn Hydrogen, but we're still working on the fuel tank dilema.  So, for a long answer, I believe that there is and will be time. I'm looking foward to being put out of buisiness.
495133
get the book "forget the gas pumps - make your own fuel" by jim wortham and barbara whitener. it explains very simply how to make ethanol from corn, but i believe the process would be the same.
592458
It definitely would be beneficial to switch, and strides are being made in this area. The market is slowly gaining as the world becomes more "fuel-conscience". \nThe largest national fuel ethanol industries exist in Brazil. The Brazilian ethanol industry is based on sugarcane; as of 2004, Brazil produces 14 billion liters annually, enough to replace about 40% of its gasoline demand. Also as a result, they are expected to become independent from foreign oil in 2006. Most new cars sold in Brazil are flexible-fuel vehicles that can run on ethanol, gasoline, or any blend of the two. In addition, all fuel sold in Brazil contains at least 25% ethanol.\n\n In the United States, ethanol is commonly blended with gasoline as a blend of up to 85% ethanol but more commonly seen at the 15% level, and nicknamed "gasohol". This blend is widely sold throughout the U.S. Midwest, which contains the nation's chief corn-growing centers.\n\nIn 2005, the Indy Racing League announced its cars will run on a 10% ethanol - 90% methanol blend fuel, and in 2007, the cars will race on 100% ethanol.
723048
The Governor of NY, George Pataki, is in the process of getting an ethanol producing plant in upstate NY on line in about 2 years.  He is planning a bill to sell ethanol on the New York State Thruway.  Currently, ethanol is available in the southern Midwestern states.  I think if you check out http://www.gogreen.com or http://www.goyellow.com you might find out more. \n\nCurrently, Brazil has about 85% ethanol usage.