ETHANOL & YOUR CAR: A PRIMER

It’s easy to fill up and never think about the fuel that drives your car. For many people, the whole system of gears, engines – and don’t forget chemistry – just don’t make much sense. Instead, we simply pull up to the gas station, swipe a card to get “fuel points,” and press the button for the cheapest fuel.

But how does fuel make a car run? And what is the best fuel choice at the pump?

The great part: there is a fuel choice out there that’s cheaper, reduces the impact on our environment, and is safe for our engines. That’s corn-based ethanol.

Ethanol made from corn

Ethanol starts with field corn. Not the sweet corn variety we love to chow down on, but the other kind of corn that actually represents the majority of corn grown in Illinois. Field corn is often fed to livestock and processed into other food items. (See how else homegrown Illinois corn positively impacts our state and world!)

It can also be fermented into alcohol (not the drinkable kind!) called ethanol. Most fuel sold today is made of 10% ethanol, and most vehicles on the road in the U.S. are approved to run on blends up to 15% ethanol.

Ethanol is cheaper

Every additional bit of ethanol in your vehicle makes the fuel cheaper for you (pure ethanol is cheaper than pure petroleum fuel). Here’s what that looks like at the pump:

• E10 (Unleaded 87) = 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline. Typically a more expensive option.
• E15 (UNLEADED 88) = 15% ethanol and 85% gasoline. Usually less expensive than E10.
• E85 (Flex Fuel) = 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. This is the cheapest fuel option of all, but is intended for Flex Fuel Vehicles only. See your cars manual or there is often indication on your car’s gas cap to see if what you are driving is considered a Flex Fuel Vehicle.

Ethanol is better for our environment

Ethanol burns cleaner and is a renewable fuel source. It also puts fewer pollutants into the air and has a lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emission score than petroleum fuel. Reduced GHG emissions mean fewer health issues, like cases of respiratory illnesses, asthma, heart disease, lung disease, cancer and even fewer premature deaths.

Ethanol is safe and efficient for engines

Higher blends of ethanol fuel (like Unleaded 88/E15) are perfectly safe for 2001 and newer vehicles. So, unless you’re ride is a bit old-school, you’re good to go!

Now let’s talk octane. Fuels with higher octane ratings reduce engine knocking and enhance performance. You can find the octane rating of fuel blends on the button of the fuel you select at the pump. Those buttons might read “87” or “88” or “92.”

An interesting fact: Ethanol has a higher octane rating than gasoline. Mixing high-octane ethanol with gasoline increases the octane of the blend. When you fuel up with those higher-octane ethanol blends like Unleaded 88/E15, it boosts your fuel’s efficiency and costs you less than unblended options. It’s a win-win!

Ethanol is a locally grown fuel source

Farmers are growing corn for ethanol in their fields all over Illinois. They are growing a future with cheaper fuels that clean up our air and our environment. And these fuels are locally grown, contributing to our rural economies while making us more energy independent.

To summarize, higher blends of ethanol-based fuel provide high octane levels that enhance engine performance while helping drivers save a few more bucks at the pump. It’s also clean-burning, renewable, and grown right here by Illinois corn farmers.

Agriculture really does “drive” everything forward.