Will You Soon Fill the Tank with E20?

Proponents of ethanol want to move the common blend of 90% gasoline and 10% ethanol alcohol up to 20% ethanol to further reduce oil consumption and grow the market for the grain alcohol, according to a report in USA Today. While E85 (an 85% ethanol blend) still faces hurdles to becoming a widely used fuel, E10 can already be found at gas stations across the country.

The question is, can producers up the blend to E20 without doing damage to vehicles? Studies conducted by the University of Minnesota and Minnesota State University say yes. Despite a lot of skepticism surrounding ethanol's continuing rise as the fuel of the future, many states, including Minnesota, have laws that mandate a certain percentage of fuel used be ethanol. Ethanol must account for 20% of Minnesota's fuel consumption in the "next few years."

Still, there is some doubt surrounding a 20% ethanol blend. For instance, one of the problems facing the widespread use of E85 is that ethanol corrodes engine parts and pipelines, so it's difficult to ship and requires vehicles to have special parts in their fuel systems. Some wonder if upping ethanol content to 20% will do similar damage to engines.

The USA Today article raised some of the issues associated with moving to a 20% blend by citing tests in Australia where E20 damaged 40% of the tested vehicles' catalytic converters, leading to "unchecked tailpipe emissions."

E20 must pass muster with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency before it can become a legal fuel. Used without approval, it could potentially void a vehicle's warranty. The next step will be a study by the Renewable Fuels Association to pinpoint the impact of E20 on both vehicles and the environment.

Gasoline Could Go from 10% Ethanol Up to 20% (USA Today)

Comments

[Spanky]

I myself have noticed a very noticeable drop in fuel mileage since we've had E10. I drive from a small town to a larger town for work and so I have an almost identical commute every day. I get about 36 mpg combined driving (mostly highway) with plan ole gas. When I fill up in the bigger town (which has the 10% ethanol blend) I get about 32 mpg. Now that may be just my car (04 Corolla)which was never designed to run on ethanol. For me that's a 10% drop in efficiency. Though we only are displacing 10% of the petrolium with the mix so it's a wash....except I still pay more because the ethanol is about the same price per gallon gas is at the moment. So the end result is...I pay more...us the same amount of petroleum. Essentially our goverment is selling us Moonshine for $3/gal on top of not reducing my petroleum dependance. I just hope I don't lose 6 mpg when we go to E20.

[segfault]

Yes, where's the price subsidy for the lower fuel mileage caused by ethanol? (If corn farmers are getting a subsidy to grow it, it's only fair that the consumers upon whom it is foisted also get a subsidy.)

Because I'm not convinced enough of the environmental benefits that I get a warm fuzzy feeling about paying extra for it.

[DodgeFan]

I worry for us owning older vehicles such as the 90's cars whether they are truly designed to run on that much ethonal. But older vehicles might be better able to handle it in maybe (my hope) a more robust design. I think overall this strategy is to keep more money in American hands and becomes a more feasible move if gas keeps rising.

[J]

Not a damn chance I will fill it in my car's tank.

They can go on all day claiming it wouldn't damage the vehicle's parts, and I don't give a damn. If my car breaks, who is going to pay for it?

[1outlaw]

I have a 1996 Silverado 5.7L with 221,000 miles on it with all of the last 120,000 being on E20. No mileage difference. All fuel system components are factory origional.

I also have a Saab 9.3 2T (turbo) that calls for 90 octane NL. With E20 the turbo will go to max boost as no knock is detected. With NL 90-91 octane boost is limited. Way better performance on E20--mileage seems the same but I have not as much data on this car as the Silverado.

[George]

Gasoline diluted with 10% ethanol should have a slightly over 3% reduction in mileage, coming from a BTU basis.
E20% should, in theory, double that.

For what?

Is the AKI (anti-knock index) of regular E20 gasoline going to 90 (R+M / 2) ?
That would save people money, who would otherwise normally purchase premium fuel. Especially those you need European mid-grade, 95RON, for full power.

[1outlaw]

Dave- the r+m/2 of E20 will be 92 octane. This is why my turbo spool up is not limited. With E20 in my area being 11 cents under 87NL and 21+ cents under premium- I make out well on it.