Bioethanol has potential as automotive industry fuel

The time may not be long when bioethanol becomes among the essential products that fuels the local automotive industry. That is, if things go well according to plans to develop the potential of this by-product.

First, some definitions and processes. Ethanol is simply short for ethyl alcohol, a colorless liquid with odor and taste. It is the alcohol found in beer, wine and liquor, a report provided to The STAR by AMRP Consultancy states.

For beverage purposes, ethanol is prepared by fermenting sugar. For non beverage uses, ethanol is usually prepared by passing ethylene gas at high pressure into concentrated sulfuric or phosphoric acid to form the corresponding ester. The acid-ester mixture is then diluted with water and heated, forming ethanol by hydrolysis.

Bioethanol is a blending of ethanol and gasoline to produce an alternative fuel called gasohol, says Pioneer H-Bred Philippines, Inc. (a Dupont company) through Rachel Lomibao and Bryan Rivera. Ethanol can be produced from diversified carbohydrate-containing materials. Corn, which has a 65-70 percent starch/carbohydrate content, is one of the best and most efficient sources of ethanol. Corn has the highest ethanol yield based on the conversion factor. From one metric ton of corn, 398 liters (105.3 gallons) of ethanol can be produced. Sugarcane comes in second with an ethanol yield of 85.03 liters for every metric ton.

"Ethanol has many uses," explains AMPR. It is extensively used as a solvent, preservative, disinfectant, and fuel and gasoline additive. Ethanol provides high-quality, low-cost octane booster for exceptional engine performance.

Ethanol has actually been used in cars since Henry Ford designed his 1908 Model T to operate on alcohol. Countless kilometers have been driven on ethanol-blended fuel since 1980. Or did you know that a fuel blend called E10 has long been in popular use in developed countries such as the United States, Brazil, China and India? E10 is basically 10 percent ethanol and 90 percent ordinary unleaded gasoline. With an octane rating of 113, ethanol is the highest performance fuel in the market and keeps today’s high-compression engines running smoothly.

In fact, the AMPR report states, several teams in international racing competitions use ethanol because of its high octane and excellent performance. About 30 percent of all automotive fuels sold in the US today are ethanol-blended.

One common misconception among vehicle owners is that ethanol-blended fuels are harmful to car engines. In reality, today’s cars are built to be compatible with ethanol-blended fuels and are warranted for its use. When ethanol was first introduced in the early 1980s, some cars experienced deterioration of some elastomers (rubber-like parts) and metal in fuel system components. But vehicle manufacturers immediately upgraded these fuel system components so that they are now all compatible with ethanol fuels. Best of all, since it is a renewable fuel produced from plants, unlike petroleum-based fossil fuels that have a limited supply and are the major contributor of carbon dioxide emissions, ethanol is environment-friendly.

"Ethanol is 35 percent oxygen, and adding oxygen to fuel results in more complete fuel combustion, thus reducing harmful tailpipe emissions. Ethanol displaces the use of toxic gasoline components such as benzene, which is a carcinogen. It is also nontoxic, water-soluble and quickly biodegradable," the AMPR report asserts.

The government has started laying the foundation for alternative homegrown sources of energy-through the National Biofuels Program being led by the Department of Energy (DOE), with bioethanol as its key component. Last May, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo launched the program to fast-track its implementation. For its legal framework, the proposed Bioethanol Act of 2005, currently pending in the Lower House (HB No. 4629) and in the Senate, has been certified by the President herself as urgent. When enacted, the law will mandate the blending of gasoline with bioethanol as motor fuel. Within two years from the law’s effectivity, a minimum of five percent bioethanol by volume shall be blended into all gasoline to be distributed, sold, and used as motor fuel. After that, the blending will go up to 10 percent in the succeeding years. At present, however, there are already a few gasoline stations in the country selling gasoline mixed with ethanol at 10 percent.

The Philippine Fuel Ethanol Alliance stated that, "With the phasing in of gasoline displacement under the National Bioethanol Program starting from the use of five percent blend of ethanol in gasoline from year 2007 to 2010 and 10 percent from 2010 to 2017, a total of 3.7 billion liters of gasoline will be displaced by an equal volume of ethanol over a ten-year period. From this, a total savings in foreign exchange of US$825 million over ten years of US$82 million per year will be achieved."

The Ethanol Alliance is a formal organization established in August 2004 with the aim to coordinate efforts of the stakeholder industries by way of information sharing and regular dialogues on ethanol.

As for infrastructure, the Pioneer report states, the Philippines needs 25 ethanol-producing plants to meet projected local demand. Each plant will require P1.5 billion investments. To entice investors, the government, through the Development Bank of t he Philippines (DBP), is offering at least a P50-billion financing portfolio and indigenous-based energy projects.

The price of ethanol will not be more than P25 a liter, according to Rep. Juan Miguel Zubiri of Bukidnon, one of the authors of the proposed Bioethanol Fuel Act of 2005.

Last Sept. 1, the Philippine Seed Industry Association of the Philippines (PSIA), which has 18 members from vegetable and corn seed companies, expressed its support for the government’s National Bioethanol Program. From the private sector, Pioneer Hi-Bred Philippines, Inc., a member of PSIA, has been actively supporting the government’s biofuels program.

Pioneer asserts, "Corn ethanol can help reduce the country’s over dependence on oil which will in turn release pressure on the country’s foreign reserves. It will also help improve the quality of air and in the long term, promises to enhance the efficiency of vehicles."