Bush, Auto Execs to Talk Flex-Fuel Cars

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

Bush, Auto Execs to Talk Flex-Fuel Cars
Email this Story

Mar 25, 11:55 AM (ET)

By KEN THOMAS

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush is getting at look at U.S. automakers' latest advances in alternative fuel vehicles as the companies press the case that ethanol and biodiesel blends can help reduce the nation's reliance on foreign oil.

Bush scheduled a White House meeting Monday with General Motors Corp. (GM) chairman and chief executive Rick Wagoner, Ford Motor Co. (F) chief executive Alan Mulally and DaimlerChrysler AG' (DCX)s Chrysler Group chief executive Tom LaSorda.

The focus is on Bush's support for flexible-fuel vehicles, which are capable of using gasoline and ethanol blends, and his administration's plan to cut gas consumption by 20 percent in 10 years.

The three auto leaders have pledged to double their production of flexible fuel vehicles to about 2 million a year by 2010.

Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20070325/D8O39N4G0.html

[Kutjara]

1. Another snow job by the Big Three.

Lotsa feelgood PR now and then they'll start whining in late 2009 that the technology/infrastructure/customer demand just isn't there, and the goals can't be met. Then they'll "pledge" to stick another bandaid on the problem by 2013. Rinse and repeat.

Relying on the auto industry to clean up the environment is like appointing Ted Bundy coed welfare officer.

[jpak]

3. I agree - all the Detroit flex-fuel vehicles I've seen are gas guzzlers

transformed into ethanol guzzlers.

If "Detroit" is serious about its future, they should be developing plug-in flex-fuel (or diesel) hybrids...not lushy SUVs...

[kestrel91316]

2. I'm not buyin' unless they come up with a pluggable biodiesel

hybrid. And a small sedan at that. I don't want a fancy flexfueled GIANT FRIGGIN' SUV.

[rodeodance]

4. it will all be let the market do the work -NO mandates

[Kolesar]

5. Pimentel &Patzek: biofuels cannot be our motor fuels solution

It gives me no pleasure in relaying this information. Biofuel technology is going to need a huge technological improvement to become a viable solution. At the moment, our "leaders" are wasting time with these distractions. What we need are increased fuel economy standards for automobiles.

http://www.sehn.org/tccpdf/Energy-biofuel%20outputs%20&inputs.pdf

CONCLUSION

Several physical and chemical factors limit the
production of liquid fuels such as ethanol and
biodiesel using plant biomass materials.These include
the following:

(1) An extremely low fraction of the sunlight
reaching America is captured by plants. On
average the sunlight captured by plants is
only about 01.%, with corn providing 0.25%.
These low values are in contrast to photovoltaics
that capture from 10% or more sunlight,
or approximately 100-fold more sunlight
than plant biomass.

(2) In ethanol production the carbohydrates
are converted into ethanol by microbes,
that on average bring the concentration of
ethanol to 8% in the broth with 92% water.
Large amounts of fossil energy are required
to remove the 8% ethanol from the 92%
water.

(3) For biodiesel production, there are two problems:
the relatively low yields of oil crops
ranging from 1,500 kg/ha for sunflower to
about 2,700 kg/ha for soybeans; sunflower
averages 25.5% oil, whereas soybeans average
18% oil. In addition, the oil extraction
processes for all oil crops is highly energy
intensive as reported in this manuscript.
Therefore, these crops are poor producers of
biomass energy.