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Minnesota experienc shows thirst for ethanol evaporating

Grand ForksHerald.com -- Minnesota has been an unofficial testing ground for using ethanol to fuel vehicles, but after years of steady increases, interest appears to be waning.

Despite a push from the governor and an increase in the number of so-called flexible-fuel vehicles on the road — which can run on either gasoline or a mostly ethanol blend — sales of E85 have dipped in recent months, beyond the normal decline in winter months.

In February, sales of E85, a cleaner-burning fuel consisting of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, hit their lowest mark since 2006, according to a new report by the Minnesota Department of Commerce. Sales, which bottomed out around 1 million gallons per month, started to rebound this spring but are still lagging last year’s numbers.

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Submitted Jul 04, 2009 By: ifallsguy

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vegaland Champion Author Houston Posts:1,078 Points:238,805 Joined:May 2006	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:41:53 AM Ignore vegaland Report Abuse Ethanol works in Brazil because they use sugarcane and the workers are virtual slaves. In the US, it won't work without massive subsidies.
NorthglennBill Champion Author Denver Posts:1,799 Points:342,030 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:41:10 AM Ignore NorthglennBill Report Abuse Ethanol has always been a bad idea. Despite the marketing that the farm interests have been doing, it seems that more ane more people are seeing what a bad idea it is.
Valricoslash All-Star Author Tampa Posts:680 Points:170,205 Joined:Nov 2008	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:40:33 AM Ignore Valricoslash Report Abuse They probably figured out theprice of corn for the table is getting too expensive, because they would rather turn it into fuel. Beside, the fuel economy of E85 sucks.
fuelconscious Veteran Author Los Angeles Posts:378 Points:110,550 Joined:Jan 2008	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:35:37 AM Ignore fuelconscious Report Abuse E85 is crap. That fuel corrodes the combustion system on the vehicle and it is not fuel efficient at all.
RichardoB Champion Author North Carolina Posts:1,434 Points:785,110 Joined:Jun 2007	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:35:24 AM Ignore RichardoB Report Abuse E85 would be fine for engines that can run it if the price was low enough to match the lower mpg.
twiper1 Champion Author San Diego Posts:1,478 Points:343,090 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:33:11 AM Ignore twiper1 Report Abuse they need to get away from liuid fuels altogether. Electric and solar is the way to go
CelticsDraftee Champion Author Boston Posts:1,050 Points:237,815 Joined:Feb 2009	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 10:31:06 AM Ignore CelticsDraftee Report Abuse Minnesota, where cold and evaporation happen.
ifallsguy Champion Author Minnesota Posts:1,310 Points:474,450 Joined:Apr 2007	Message Posted: Jul 4, 2009 9:12:40 AM Ignore ifallsguy Report Abuse E85 has never been the answer. The US government refuses to look at the Brazil experience, where ethanol works because of the massive biomass they have in a tropical environment to convert into CHEAP ethanol. The E85 mix has been a joke, not easy to find and lower MPG. Add to that the higher cost of the vehicle because of the modification fees, you have another example of government's failure to think things through.