The European Union is aiming at increasing the market share of biofuels in order to improve the security ofsupply of transport fuel and to reduce CO2 emissions. The target is to reach a 10% of fuels from renewablesources on energy basis in the transport sector by 2020 and biofuels represent one of the most importantoptions. Bioethanol and biodiesel represent the only biofuels cu...

Ethanol produced from biomass, such as corn grain or sugar cane, is a renewable fuel that helps lessen dependence on petroleum-based fossil fuels. Currently, the majority of ethanol production in the United States utilizes corn grain, which supplied about 14 billion gallons of ethanol to the market in 2012. In the near future, corn supplies for ethanol are expected to be limited due to concerns...

In an effort to reduce dependence on petroleum-based fuels and increase engine efficiency, fuel-flexible engines with advanced technologies, including variable valve timing, are being developed. Fuel-flexible spark-ignition engines permit the increased use of ethanol–gasoline blends. Ethanol, an alternative to petroleum-based gasoline, is a renewable fuel, which has the added advantage of impro...

We studied steam reforming of ethanol at room temperature and atmospheric pressure using low energy pulse (LEP) discharge. In this study, we employed characteristic novel reformer, one electrode was made of carbon fibers (o.d. 7.0 μm) bundle. So fuel was supplied to discharge region by capillary action of the fibers and reformed directly by LEP plasma without any pump or heater. When using this...

We assessed current water consumption during liquid fuel production, evaluating major steps of fuel lifecycle for five fuel pathways: bioethanol from corn, bioethanol from cellulosic feedstocks, gasoline from U.S. conventional crude obtained from onshore wells, gasoline from Saudi Arabian crude, and gasoline from Canadian oil sands. Our analysis revealed that the amount of irrigation water used...

Recently the support of biofuel production has been a politically sensitive topic. Politicians have pushed for support for fuel ethanol production as an environmentally friendly alternative to imported oil, as well as a way to boost farm profits and improve rural livelihoods. Several government policies actively promote ethanol production via tax incentives and mandates, and these policies are ...

Several studies suggest that the $1.4 billion in government subsidies are encouraging the ethanol program without substantial benefits to the U.S. economy. Large ethanol industries and a few U.S. government agencies, such as the USDA, support the production of ethanol. Corn-farmers receive minimal profits. In the U.S. ethanol system, considerably more energy, including high-grade fossil fuel, i...

In the present work several Pt-based anode catalysts supported on carbon XC-72R were prepared with a novel method and characterized by means of XRD, TEM and XPS analysis. It was found that all these catalysts are consisted of uniform nanosized particles with sharp distribution and Pt lattice parameter decreases with the addition of Ru or Pd and increases with the addition of Sn or W. Cyclic vol...

Ethanol made biologically from cellulosic biomass, including agricultural and forestry residues, portions of municipal waste being widely recognized as a unique transportation fuel with powerful economic, environmental and strategic attributes. Approximately, 1 kg of residue is produced for each kilogram of grains harvested. In this study, we demonstrate that the fruit biomass peel residue coul...

Porous Pt nanowire arrays show enhanced electrocatalytic activities for ethanol oxidation in direct alcohol fuel cells.