What Are the Benefits of Using Corn as a Fuel Source?
As a source of alternative fuel, corn is a viable option that can be used in different ways, including burning the shelled corn or using it to make ethanol. Corn is environmentally neutral and does not contaminate the soil or groundwater, making it a desirable commodity in today's energy market.
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Ethanol
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Corn can be used to make ethanol for flex-fuel vehicles. Corn can be used to make ethanol--an alcohol fuel--and is most commonly used in mixture with gasoline. A mixture of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline is called "E85" and is used for light-duty vehicles. The U.S. Department of Energy has started initiatives to help expand ethanol production and help alleviate the dependence on imported oil.
Flex-Fuel Vehicles
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Some of the earliest vehicles were fueled by alcohol, including Henry Ford's first car. The oil crisis of the 1970s saw a revival of ethanol; in the 1990s, the number of flex-fuel vehicles grew from 400 in 1995 to more than 200,000 in 1999. Most ethanol-powered vehicles are in the Midwest, close to their source of fuel--corn-producing states like Iowa, Nebraska, and Illinois.
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Corn-Burning Furnaces
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Another use of corn as an alternative fuel is in corn-burning furnaces and boilers. A corn-fired system can be set up to provide hot water, low- or high-pressure steam, or used with a turbine to produce electricity. Corn-burning furnaces are set up with a storage facility, a delivery system, and a firebox in conjunction with the furnace or boiler.
Costs
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The use of corn-fueled furnaces can lower energy costs for users when a bushel of yellow corn can be purchased at $2.70, which would be the equivalent of buying propane at $0.65 per gallon. Burning corn for heating is also economical, costing $16.00 per million BTUs (British Thermal Units) compared with $31.74 per million BTUs for standard fuel oil.
Advantages
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Shelled corn is one of the cleanest burning fuels; it produces few particulates and no carbon monoxide. Corn takes only one season to grow, making it an easily renewable resource dependent only on weather conditions. If corn is spilled on the ground, it does not harm the environment or contaminate the water table.
Impact
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The demand for ethanol and other alternative fuels has created growth opportunities for many rural communities, especially in corn-growing regions like northern Iowa. One plant in Iowa processes almost 1 million bushels of corn into roughly 3 million gallons of ethanol each month.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of darwin Bell Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of Amanda
