More good news about biofuel 1843Reading Ashton Crusher's comment above, I find it disheartening that everyone believes Pimental and the Cornell Study without questioning it, it just prooves that people will believe anything said by anyone...
Popular Science July 2005
Liquor Does It Quicker; Saab's BioPower engine gives ethanol a kick in the pants
By: Matthew Phenix
With all the buzz about hybrids, itās easy to ignore our homegrown alternative fuel: ethanol. Clean-burning and infinitely renewable-weāre talking grain alcohol-ethanol is dear to environmentalists and economists alike. The standard 85-15-percent ethanol-gasoline blend (E85) is widely used in Sweden, but there are only 313 E85 fueling stations in the U.S. And motorheads arenāt clamoring for more, because E85 typically delivers inferior fuel economy; it has about 75 percent of the potential energy of gasoline, so it takes up to 20 percent more hooch to keep horsepower on par. But E85 also has a high octane rating (around 110), and Saab realized that a turbocharger could harness it. Turbos push extra air into the cylinder, and higher octane allows a fuel to better endure the increased pressure. So Saab cranked up its fans and created the BioPower engine, the first commercially available ethanol turbo. A computer samples the fuel mixture and adjusts boost pressure-from 5.8 psi for pure gasoline to 13.8 psi for E85. Running straight gasoline, the engine produces 148 horsepower, but E85 jacks it up to 184, with no penalty in fuel economy.
SAAB 9-5 2.OT Biopower Sedan SPECS GASOLINE E85 POWER 148 hp 184 hp TORQUE 177 lb.-ft 207 lb.-ft MAX. BOOST 5.8 psi 13.8 psi 0-62 MPH 9.8 sec 8.5 sec TOP SPEED 134 mph 140 mph PRICE $35,000 $35,000 *based on exchange rates at press time
www.illinibioenergy.com-documentsjune05-27-SAAB%20Engine.doc
So it's possible to be green and have a hot car too.
Graham
