Ethanol, A Fuel

Ethanol, a Fuel?

Ethanol fuel is a type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages that is often made from common agricultural products. It is either mass-produced by fermentation of sugars or from cellulose. Wheat or corn kernels are ground in a hammer-mill to expose the starch, the ground grain is then mixed with water, heated briefly and enzymes are added to convert the starch to sugar using a chemical reaction called hydrolysis. Yeast is added to ferment the sugars to ethanol and finally the ethanol is separated from the mixture by distillation. The fermentation process is quite simple; a glucose molecule is broken down into ethanol molecules and one carbon dioxide molecule, the carbon dioxide is released into the air and you are left with a colourless, clean burning liquid with a strong odour. This makes it easy to produce an alternate cleaner burning fuel for cars and other means of transportation. Ethanol is already being used in high-performance motor fuel because it cuts poisonous emissions and is better for the environment then traditional fuels. There have been many developments in using a higher ethanol concentration in fuels for cars and other types of transportation, by many leading car companies research institutes. New engines have been developed called Flexifuel, these engines are able to burn a E85 fuel opposed to the traditional motor fuel with an ethanol concentration at most of 10%, this makes the E85 fuel less expensive and cleaner burning. The Canadian government and some provinces have continuously supported the product of ethanol fuel and the use of it, any ethanol blended fuel receives exemption from the federal tax of 10 cents a litre for gasoline. As reaction to the Government of Canada Action Plan 2000 on Climate Change, the government of Canada establish the Future Fuels initiative to increase the supply and use of ethanol produced from biomass. There is three main components to this initiative that the Canadian Government has established; the renewal of the National Biomass Ethanol Program, which provides contingent loan guarantees to ethanol producers; funds for public awareness activities, and analysis and research. All of this is guaranteeing

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