 Ethanol in Brazil is used in two ways: either blended in a mix of 75% gasoline and 25% ethanol or as pure ethanol pumped directly into a car’s fuel tank. On any given day, motorists across Brazil can stand in front of a pump and decide, based on price, whether they want to put ethanol or gasoline into their “flex-fuel” car engine, or whether they want to blend the two fuels.
The “flex-fuel” vehicles work on any mixture or combination of ethanol and gasoline, so that a motorist can literally put some gasoline in the tank, and later add any quantity of ethanol to the same tank.
In 2006, 80% of light vehicle sales in Brazil were “flex-fuel”. For this basic reason, Brazil has now become self sufficient for its energy needs, with sugar-based ethanol providing 40% of its automotive fuel needs, or 20% of its total energy needs.
Labels: alternative fuels, efficiency, ethanol |
