Is it Worth It? Re: <VV> (E-85 selling for $1.69 per gal in Colorado last week)

[werp knarly]

im sure its not worth it yet, but i like the idea of at least some of my money staying in this country and not going to the middle east.  mine is a long way from a daily driver, i may only put a tank or two thru it a year,

sounds like bigger jets are in order... but does anyone have any ideas what they might be for a 110 PG?


Thanks!

Joe,
-- Original Message ----- 
  From: FrankCB at aol.com 
  To: werpknarly at centurytel.net ; fastvair at yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 3:37 PM
  Subject: Is it Worth It? Re: <VV> (E-85 selling for $1.69 per gal in Colorado last week)


  Joe et al,
      Assuming that E-85 fuel is 85% ethanol (ethyl alcohol) and 15% gasoline, it's unlikely that you'll save anything on fuel costs by using it.  Ethanol has a heating value of only 11,500 BTU/lb while gasoline has about 19,000 BTU/lb.  Therefore, pure ethanol has only about 60% of the heating value of gasoline.  So if we take 85% of 11,500 we get 9775.  15% of 19,000 gives 2850.  Adding 9775 to 2850 gives 12625 BTU/lb for the E-85 which is still about 66% of the heating value of gasoline.  So E-85 has only about 2/3 the energy value of straight gasoline.  Therefore it's no bargain unless the cost of gasoline gets up to nearly $3 per gallon.
      Also since the stoichiometric ratio of ethanol is only 9 to 1 versus the stoich of gasoline which is 14.6 to 1, you'd have to make major changes ENRICHING the air/fuel mix fed to the engine.  Cars that are designed from the factory to run on E-85 as well as straight gasoline have a sensor that can tell which fuel is being fed (based on refractive index) and adjust the fuel injection to compensate for that fuel or any mix of fuel between 85% ethanol/15% gasoline all the way to 100% gasoline.
      Is it worth it??
      Frank "chemically pontificating" Burkhard  

  In a message dated 4/13/05 1:21:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time, werpknarly at centurytel.net writes:
    http://www.hpj.com/dtnnewstable.cfm?type=story&sid=13917
    (E-85 was selling for $1.69 per gallon in Colorado last week)

    what about e-85 in a LM corvair? besides a new fuel filter, what would i adjust?

    Thanks!

    Joe, Lisa, Teegan, and Mina
    66 110 monza vert pg