What is bioethanol?

Bioethanol is a completely renewable and sustainable alternative fuel source. When bioethanol is mixed in high volumes with low volumes of petrol, a potent yet environmentally friendly alternative fuel called bioethanol E85 is created. This eco-friendly fuel can reduce by up to 70% the typical emissions of fossil carbon dioxide (CO2), one of the greenhouse gases widely believed to contribute to global warming.

Bioethanol is available in various blends, most commonly E5, E10, E85, E100. The E stands for bioethanol and the number denotes the percentage of bioethanol in the blend, so E85 is composed of 85% bioethanol and 15% petrol.

How does it reduce CO2 emissions?

Since bioethanol comes from biomass, it actually ‘recycles' CO2 already present in the atmosphere. That is, the crops grown for conversion to bioethanol remove CO2 from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. When the bioethanol is burned as a fuel during combustion, CO2 is then returned to the atmosphere. However, up to 70% of the CO2 emitted is offset by the bioethanol crops' previous removal process.

As an alternative fuel, not only does bioethanol reduce CO2, it also helps reduce our dependence on oil significantly. This is a major advantage, since oil is a finite resource for which global demand is expected to eventually exceed supply.