What do you think of bio fuels?

Question

Doesn't it seem like a horrible waste of good alcohol? (hic)

Answer 1

I think we should give up cars altogether and just drink the alcohol...

Answer 2

it depends what it is made of. ethanol in gasoline is not helping at all, in fact it is making global climate change worse by taking two gallons of gasoline to make 1 gallon of ethanol, and it is taking the corn that should be for food. the ethanol was put in place before enough research was done. on the other hand, hydrogen is good because it isnt hard to make and makes perfectly clean fresh water. so some biofuels are bad and some are good. one thing that definately needs be done is weening ourselves off of gasoline

Answer 3

If it is from a food source yes it is a tremendous wastes, especially corn since it is highly inefficient and highly subsidies an already rich industry that creates poverty in other countries and food shortages. Corn subsidies and ethanol is one of the biggest green washing scams there are. Big business is all over this industry as they own the rights to the GM patented seeds that now terminate after one season. The gross thing about this is we are all forced to make these fat cats even more fat off the backs of the American taxpayer.

I believe it Ok to use the highly efficient switch grass and the waste shaving of wood mills.

But the best use of bio-fuel in my opinion is Jatropha. It yields a fruit that is almost 40% oil and can grow in regions most other food crop will not.

http://www.jatrophabiodiesel.org/

Oh yes, one user reminded me of algae bio fuel. This is a fuel I believe the Israelis are developing. They claim they can feed the algae smokestack emissions to make it grow more rapidly. Also the fuel itself is ironically green.

Bonus !!!

Answer 4

If we just drank all of that alcohol we wouldn't be able to drive anyway - so there you go - no more transportation problem.

Answer 5

they will probably solve the oil/energy problem just not the way people plan...

the food shortages and ensuing food riots will deplete the excess population in parts of the world that can't make enough food and reduce total energy requirements of the humans...

when they started the bio plans my objection was..when it comes down to a choice of food or oil who decides who gets to drive and who gets to eat.. people laughed at me...

most have stopped laughing now.

Answer 6

My thoughts exactly. That's why I fill up my diesel engine with V-8. It's not like I'm going to drink that c**p.

Answer 7

Most biofuels waste precious food crops, but some (cellulosic ethanol and algal biodiesel) could potentially be part of the answer to curing the worlds oil addiction.

Answer 8

Corn ethanol is produced less efficiently than sugarcane ethanol, which they use in Brazil. But even better is switchgrass which can be grown on marginal land that is currently kept out of production by the USDA. It returns 540% of the energy needed to make it, compared to corn at 25%, the root system is permanent meaning it won't needed to be replanted each season and the roots keep most of the CO2 used in making and using the fuel out of the atmosphere. Most engines can run on pure ethanol, the first cars Ford made ran on alcohol after all and the emissions are better than from gasoline or diesel. They put in additives to keep people from drinking it.

Answer 9

Bio fuels are not the solution to global warming. They are still carbon based and CO2 is the problem. Also, millions of people starved last year because the food prices were too expensive due to the fact that we are using the food for bio fuel now. Although I have read about a plant called the Jatropha plant that grows in a desert environment and is toxic to humans to ingest so it would not compete for food. However, it is still carbon based. I think that solar power is the way to go.

Answer 10

It solves absolutely nothing!  First you have the inefficient fuel that you have to burn twice the amount to equal fossil fuels.  Then you have the global warming aspect.  Yes, plants absorb some CO2 but it is actually a fast track to bring CO2 out of the ground and directly into the atmosphere.

One of the primary products of fermentation is CO2...  Then you have to actually burn the product to produce the energy...  Which is additional CO2.  So, it is inefficient, not cost effective and worse for our environment.  Like burning two clean logs instead of one dirty one...  Hmmmmm

By the way... Hydrogen is not a bio-fuel.  It is as much a bio-fuel as is fossil fuel.