Your Guide To Green

With the financial and environmental "price" of gas, not to mention America 's dependence on foreign oil, why not purchase a vehicle that runs on domestic, alternative fuels derived from crops? Ethanol-85 (E-85) and biofuel vehicles are a sustainable and practical solution to the gas crisis and are readily available in your community. (Be careful not to confuse electric-gasoline hybrids, such as the Toyota Prius, with an E-85 or biofuel vehicle).

E-85 is a fuel that is a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline, by volume. Ethanol can be made from anything organic containing starch or sugar: the most effective crop is corn, but rice, wheat, barley, sugar beets and sugar cane also work. E-85 is used by flexible-fuel vehicles (FFV): vehicles that have been modified to run on higher concentrations of ethanol, and have an octane rating of 105. Compared to the petroleum it replaces, E-85 has fewer greenhouse gas emissions and a decrease in energy used per gallon burned. This means that the overall demand for fossil fuels is decreased. Vehicles that are capable of running on E-85 are various models from Ford, Toyota , General Motors, Mercedes and Chrysler.

For a list of E-85 fuel stations, visit www.e85refueling.com .

Another fuel option to consider is biofuel, available most often in the form of biodiesel. Biofuel is a clean-burning alternative fuel made from plants such as sugar cane or soybeans, or a metabolic byproduct, such as cow manure. Biofuel contains no petroleum products, however it can be blended with them. When biofuel is blended with diesel, it becomes biodiesel: it can be used in standard diesel engines with very little modification. Biofuel, a long chain of fatty acids derived from vegetable oil, is made by a chemical process called transesterification, where the glycerin is separated from the fat and vegetable oil, leaving two byproducts: biofuel and glycerin.

The benefits of using biofuel are overwhelming. Biofuel is less toxic than table salt and biodegrades faster than sugar. Greenhouse gas emissions are substantially lower when compared to petroleum. Biofuel is derived from renewable resources and is biodegradable, nontoxic and free of sulfur and aromatics. In addition, biofuel is a domestic, renewable resource that decreases our dependence on foreign oil and contributes to our own economy by supporting local farmers who grow crops to produce biofuel.

Biofuel is available nationwide and can be bought directly from producers and marketers, petroleum distributors and some public pumps. Musician Willie Nelson has his own line of clean-burning biodiesel available at truck stops, called “Willie Nelson's Biodiesel�. (FYI: Home heating oil and biodiesel also are blended into a home heating option called Bioheat.)

If you are interested in exploring other types of alternatively fueled vehicles that are not derived from agricultural goods, try looking into compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, electric or even hydrogen cars. No matter what you choose, the impact can be huge: not only are you getting better gas mileage and spending less money at the pump, but you are also eliminating the release of greenhouse gases by consuming less fossil fuels. Help the environment, support the domestic economy and save some of your own green (money) – fill'er-up with soybeans!

Sources:

http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/e85toolkit/e85_fuel.html

http://www.e85fuel.com/e85101/faq.php

http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/technology/biofuels/

http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/altfuel/biodiesel.html

http://www.altfuels.org

http://www.hybridcars.com