Video: Indy racer says he gets better mileage on ethanol
Update: Indy cars used a mix of 90 percent methanol and 10 percent ethanol. Indy switched over to 100 percent ethanol in 2007 and the improved mileage comes from the higher energy content of ethanol over methanol.
In the video above from the Sundance Channel show, Big Ideas for a Small Planet, an Indy race car driver says he gets better mileage on ethanol. First he says racing can be green, that the car gets more power on ethanol and then he says he gets a lot better mileage. So much better mileage, in fact, they had to shrink the size of the fuel tank. Here is the exact quote:
First thing that we've noticed with the transition, from the ten percent to hundred percent ethanol this year, is that we have a broader power band and more torque. So the car is pulling better and accelerating better out of the corner. We also have gotten a lot better mileage, so we are reducing the size of the fuel cell from 30 gallons down to 22 gallons. We are out there testing this under the toughest conditions that we can and that's going to make better-performing cars that can run ethanol more efficiently out on the road.
FYI, "fuel cell" in Indy race cars are just fuel tanks and have nothing to do with hydrogen fuel cells. Anyway, this is the tipping point for me. I think it's high time we get some serious money behind researching and getting to market technology that makes ethanol more efficient than gas. If half of what this Indy racer (and this study) says are true, ethanol engine technology should be the first and central focus ahead of hybrids or hydrogen.
Related:
- Study: non-flex fuel cars get better fuel economy on ethanol
- Video: Toyota racing series the first to use cars powered by E85
- Can any car use E85?
- Is Biowillie misleading customers?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Rob 6:58PM (2/22/2008)
Like most R/C pilots I have been using methanol blended fuels in my model engines since the 60's, we typically get around 2 horsepower out of .6 cubic inch. If my V6 Mustang was set up to burn that fuel exclusively it would make over 700HP! Detractors will say that model fuel has nitro blended in but the power is not that much different on straight Methanol. I'm beginning to think most anti alcohol rumor-mongering comes from people who have a stake in petroleum use!
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Mulad 10:18AM (12/19/2007)
He's getting better mileage since they switched from *methanol* to ethanol. Just like ethanol compared to gasoline, methanol only has about 75% of the energy per unit volume as ethanol does.
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Lascelles Linton 10:51AM (12/19/2007)
Mulad, Corrected. Thanks.
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Norris Shelton 11:29AM (12/19/2007)
Also, note that they are using E100. In the US, we only get E85. The other 15% must be something that denatures the alcohol (usually gasoline - doh). E100 has an octane rating of about 128. Powerful stuff, but not the stuff that we will see at our pumps (100 - 105). Too bad. I would love to pull up to the pump, fill up, then pull out my jug labeled "xxx" and fill it up!
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MikeW 12:55PM (12/19/2007)
Spin.
The reason there is more power, because the engine size was increased from 3 to 3.5 liters.
The specific consumption in reduced, but the specific power was also slightly reduced (hence the reason for the extra 16.7% more displacement)
E98 has an AKI of 115.
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why not the LS2/LS7? 1:06PM (12/19/2007)
We don't get E100 in the US because E100 isn't volatile enough to combust in the engine when it's cold. My understanding is that when starting cold below 40 degrees, your car would just refuse to fire on E100.
Maybe glow-plugs could solve this problem?
A mix of 85% 128 octane ethanol and 15% 85 octane gas would be 122 octane. That's plenty, and is why the articles about ethanol being "performance fuel" are going around.
Ethanol just contains less energy than gas, it'll never get the same mpg, just like gas cannot match Diesel. This is bad in things that fly, like planes, and are sensitive to how much fuel they have to carry by volume. It's not such a big deal in a car. If you get a gas car to get 85% the mpg of a Diesel, then they're both using the same amount of oil.
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