Ethanol E85 fuel loses cost-benefit test to diesel (cost to operate)

[phantom power]

Anything's better than ethanol blend E85, even ordinary gasoline, a new cost-benefit analysis of alternative fuels by researcher John Graham at the Pardee Rand Graduate School finds.

Diesels scored highest, surprising even the researchers. "We were kind of expecting that hybrids would outperform diesels when we went into the study. It's close, but the advanced diesel" provides better performance and fuel economy for the price, he says.

Compared to gasoline, a driver could spend as much as $1,600 more on fuel over a vehicle's life burning E85, a mix of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline, Graham calculates, while a diesel could save as much as $2,300.

Diesels are just creeping back into the USA as automakers introduce clean-burning models that meet new pollution rules.

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2007-11-29-e85-ethanol_N.htm

[AlecBGreen]

1. diesel is THE internal combustion engine

gasoline is crappy, less efficient Johnny-come-lately

[hatrack]

5. Oh, and diesel requires substantially less energy to refine, IIRC

Something like 30 - 40% less? Can't remember for certain, but it's a substantial energy saving.

[Javaman]

2. Why?

because ethanol doesn't get the same bang for the buck.

less miles per gallon than either gas or diesel.

[razzleberry]

3. ethanol more valuable as octane booster

for gasoline.

current price of ethanol not indicative of future price

[eppur_se_muova]

4. Interesting gubmint site for energy documents, not all from gubmint sources --

http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/publications_new_docs.html