wrote in message
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On Wed, 05 Apr 2006 11:19:43 -0500, Del Cecchi
wrote:

Most of the ethanol used in the us is made in the us.

Brazilian ethanol is made from sugar cane.

Since ethanol is so damned inefficient in the first place (it takes a
lot more energy to make it than you get when you burn it) I can't
imagine how shipping it very far can make any sense at all.
The only thing that might be worse in efficiency terms is the hydrogen
boondoggle.

The energy required to make ethanol is apparently a controversial
question. For example some folks count the energy to manufacture the
tractor used to grow the corn. Some count the energy to mine the iron to
make the tractor. Some add in the energy to make the trucks and power
shovels to mine the iron to make the tractor. Some add the energy to
make the factory to process the iron ore. And so on with the fertilizer
etc. Then they compare to the energy in a gallon of gasoline.

At least ethanol is pretty much neutral with respect to carbon balance.

del

del