No, because the energy input in preparing the land, sowing the seed, nurturing the crop, harvesting it, processing it into ethanol will be more expensive, driving the cost of ethanol similarly higher.
The only way consumers will ever buy into ethanol is if they don't realize they are getting substantially less energy (i.e. milage) and that they are paying far more thn the pump price in federal subsidies.
The desire for energy independence makes us all want to find a way to cut loose from foreign oil, but ethanol is a singularly poor way of accomplishing that goal.
We'd be better advised to let our own energy producers find and develop domestic oil sources with less hostility and blame.
Or put the cost of developing new fuels, or more efficient automobiles on the auto industry. I realize this is a bold statement, but they would be the ones to benefit from any new technologies in the market. Why should the United States government be burdened with the cost of research and development that will eventually be used around the world? The auto industry, regardless of financial news, is flush with capital and could easily make new tech or much higher efficiencies happen. The U.S. government should put penalties on automakers that do not meet certain benchmnarks. For example, every vehicle must acheive at least 30 mpg by 2010, an alternate energy source must be available on all cars, either hybrid or compete, by 2015. Hydrogen vehicles should be considered very heavily in this equation. The fact is that production of Hydrogen will become more efficient and less expensive as more cars add it as a fuel source.
" The desire for energy independence makes us all want to find a way to cut loose from foreign oil, but ethanol is a singularly poor way of accomplishing that goal.
We'd be better advised to let our own energy producers find and develop domestic oil sources with less hostility and blame."
Very well stated.
The real future for reducing foreign oil consumption is the use of small Diesel engines combined with conservation and development of supplies here at home.
Everyone thinks that diesels are so dirty. They are not. I worked for years developing Diesel engine control systems and I can assure you that they are orders of magnitude cleaner than they used to be.
When you look at emissions in terms of total miles traveled vs pollutants per gallon of fuel consumed it looks a lot better.
But the EPA and CARB find Diesels a politically unacceptable solution.
Based on the article's BTU calculations I suspect that ethanol blends such as E85 are no less polluting than regular gasoline.
These are not matters that most folks have the knowledge to understand.
Politics and emotion rule the day.