Ethanol based e85 gets worse MPG then regular gasoline why?

Question

When at the Indy 500 this year they announced that they were able to go to a 100% ethanol based fuel and was getting better MPG so they reduced the size of the fuel tank from 30gal to 22gal. Why can't any of the Auto makers apply this technology to Passenger cars and trucks?

Answer 1

That is not true, I work for the Gov and use trucks that run on Flex Fuel E85 and they get the same with Gas as they do with E85

Right now gas cost $3.40 here in Minnesota and E85 is $2.59 per gallon.

not all E85 is made with corn, cellulose's ethanol is being made as well, E85 DOES NOT give off as much carbon as gas.

is E85 the answer?, NO, its a band-aid

but it is far better than running on gas

Answer 2

I don't know about Indy 500 cars but the reason passenger cars that use ethanol is because ethanol has less energy per gallon. Therefore e85 also has less energy per gallon and it gets less mileage.

You might be interested to know that diesel has more energy per gallon than gasoline and that is part of the reason it gets better mileage.

Compression ratio can also affect mileage. All other things being equal an engine with a higher compression ratio will get better mileage because it can extract more work from the expanding gases. That is also part of the reason that diesels get better mileage. That may also be the reason Indy 500 cars that burn ethanol get better mileage. Ethanol has a high octane rating and that allows for higher compression ratios to be used.

Answer 3

Gasoline has the most delta H or enthalpy...i think. Ethanol is one of the worst, less energy emitted, less mpg.

Answer 4

IRL cars previously ran on methanol, not gasoline.  Ethanol contains more energy per gallon than methanol, thus the increase in MPG.  It contains much less energy per gallon, however, than gasoline so ethanol powered cars get lower MPG than gasoline powered cars.  I remember when gasoline was a sanctioned fuel at the Indy 500, several teams were planning on making the race without a single pit stop, using gasoline.  These plans were ended when one of these cars went into the wall on the first turn of lap.  The resulting fire caused the first red flag in Indy history and led to restrictions on the amount of fuel the cars could carry and eventually to the desanctioning of gasoline as a fuel.

Answer 5

Indy cars have very exotic and high performance engines built for the specific purpose of running top speed for 500 miles while getting as much miles per gallon as possible (averages 1.5 to 3 mpg. or 1 lap if possible).

It would make cars too costly (as if the already weren't) and it takes 1.5 to 2 gal. of alcohol to go same distance as 1 gall. of straight gasoline. That required 10% we're getting now will cut your gas mileage more than any savings (?) you might think you are getting. Alcohol also effects rubber seals and some metals used in engines.

Answer 6

Check out the website below.  It will give you some answers to that question:

http://www.e85fuel.com

E85 burns at about 90% the efficiency of gasoline in a regular car.  I have a 2001 Chevy S-10 that I run on E-85 and that seems to hold true on my truck.  

The reasoning I believe for why E85 isn't as efficient as gasoline is due to the rate of ignition.  E85 burns more quickly than gas, which burns more quickly than diesel.  That faster ignition is probably what drives the fuel efficiency of E-85 down.  For Indy 500 cars, they run at a much higher RPM than regular cars do.  Since they run at a higher RPM that faster ignition rate could actually possibly make them more fuel efficient.  It's partially going to depend on how the fuel is fed into the cylinders of the engine.  The amount that is fed into the cylinders would need to be adjusted.

Another reason for why diesel is more efficient than gasoline is because of the way it is ignited.  Gasoline is ignited with spark plugs where diesel ignites by a mechanical process making it much more efficient.  Auto companies have been looking at an engine design that is similar to diesels to make gasoline engines efficient like diesels are.  And they've also been looking at quiet diesels which are more efficient than even hybrids are.  Hybrids only save energy on stop and go traffic.  Diesels are just as efficient as gas hybrids in stop and go traffic and are more efficient on highway miles.

Answer 7

And, ethanol cost more per gallon than gasoline.  At least, for now.  Another issue that most evironmentalists don't tell us is that ethanol producers are using oil in the manufacturing process.  It takes almost one gallon of oil to produce one gallon of ethanol.  And, ethanol gives off almost as much carbon dioxide as gasoline, per BTU.  In other words, ethanol isn't much better for the environment than gasoline, and costs more.

Answer 8

Hard to believe, as Ethanol has a lower energy content per unit volume than Gasoline.

Answer 9

ethanol, with its octane rating of 113, can actually increase performance of automobiles.

This is the quote I found. What they are saying is the car can run at a very high compression .This did drop the horsepower and did increase the mpg. The  Indy 500 has been using 100%methanol for a long time the change is only to 100%Ethanol and has more to do with corn and polities than speed. Gasoline has not been in this type of car for years I think it was banned back in the late 60s.