Why bio alcohol?

Cars emitting carbon dioxide constitute for the fastest growing problem for the environment and the green house effect. The number of cars today is 500 million and is expected to cross 1000 million in the year 2015. How old are your children by then?

6% by 2010
6% of the fossil fuels will be replaced by bio fuel, namely ethanol by the year 2010. This is the significance of the suggestion put forward by the Communication Committee in 2001. The vision is to create a bio energy reserve to provide the Swedish market with bio energy such as ethanol, so that the proposal of the Communication Committee is achieved. According to the calculations of BAFF to achieve this goal, approximately twenty-five production units will be required for less than half of the yearly growth of unused bio fuel. This is equivalent to 40TWh. Besides, acquiring the required quantity of ethanol, you gain electricity which would substitute two nuclear power plants, together with district heating and pellets for heating equivalent to that obtained from 3 - 4 nuclear plants.

Before the cycle
Ethanol is produced by fermentation of starch and sugar from grain, or cellulose based products such as wood shavings, forest residues, energy forest and recycled fibre. Methanol can be produced when the biomass goes through the process of gasification. This gas becomes methanol when it comes in contact with catalysts. In contrast with fossil fuels, biomass based alcohol does not contribute to an excessive collection of carbon dioxide. The quantity of carbon dioxide that is released by combustion of bio alcohol is absorbed through photo- synthesis and for the growth of new biomass.

The advantages of emissions
Bio alcohol has obvious advantages when compared to fossil fuels with regard to hydrocarbon, nitrogen oxide, particles, sulphur and ground ozone, even carbon monoxide. The only noticeable increase in emissions in comparison with fossil fuels is acetaldehyde and formaldehyde that hardly has any impact on the surroundings. Ethanol is used as fuel for busses, trucks, cars, motorboats and motor saws.

Reduced oxidant formation
Ethanol gases create less atmospheric reactivity thus resulting in reduced oxidant (ozone) formation. Gene-toxic substances in the atmosphere will reduce tremendously with the usage of ethanol (benzene, butadiene and PAC). The number of cancer cases that occur because of air pollution caused by automobiles will reduce. Alcohols do not have any gene-toxic effects. Ethanol and methanol give a higher steam pressure with certain blends in petrol. With a higher blend, 20% is regained. By changing the composition in petrol, the steam pressure can remain unchanged.

Reduced acidification
The absence of sulphur in the alcohols combined with low emissions of nitrogen oxide from heavy vehicles results in reduced pollution. Bio alcohols cannot be seen as a complete substitute for fossil fuels in the transport sector, but along with green electricity, biogas and vegetable oils, it is the only way with renewable energy for future transportation.