Ethanol Basics

Program Document · Mon Sep 24 00:00:00 EDT 2018

OSTI ID:1474837

Ethanol is a widely used, domestically produced renewable fuel made from corn and other plant materials. Ethanol can be blended with gasoline in different amounts. In fact, more than 98% of gasoline sold in the United States contains ethanol to oxygenate the fuel and help to reduce air pollution. Using ethanol in fuel also helps the nation increase the use of domestic alternative fuels, thereby potentially reducing reliance on imported oil. Gasoline and gasoline blendstocks can also use ethanol as an octane enhancer to increase vehicle performance.

• Research Organization: National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Vehicle Technologies Office (EE-3V)
• DOE Contract Number: AC36-08GO28308
• OSTI ID: 1474837
• Report Number(s): NREL/FS-5400-71090; DOE/GO-102018-5077
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
ethanol
fact sheet
Clean Cities
2018
renewable fuel
corn
plant material
gasoline
oxygenate
air pollution
alternative fuels
domestic
blendstocks