Alcohol as motor fuels

The current interest in alcohols as motor fuels is rooted in the search for alternate fuels to replace our suddenly limited petroleum-based fuels. The fact that methyl alcohol (methanol) can be produced from a variety of sources, including coal and garbage, has focused considerable attention on this material as a possible alternate fuel. The fact that the tech-... 

Another potentially adverse impact on fermentation ethanol markets is presented by the options available for the manufacture of mixed alcohols from synthesis gas. Sufficient experimental data have been accumulated to show how the alcohol yields and distributions can be manipulated and what catalysts and conditions are effective. Some of these data have established the utility of mixed alcohols as motor fuels and motor fuel components. 

The following, disadvantages of the use of alcohol as motor fuel are enumerated by Boyd. 

Bolt JA (1980) A Survey of alcohol as a motor fuel. In Alcohols as motor fuels. 

Wagner TO, Gray DS, Zarah BY, Kozinski AA (1980) Practicality of alcohok as motor fuel. Alcohols as motor fuels society of automotive engineers, Warrendale PA, pp 249-265... 

Heitland, H., Czaschke, H.W. and Pinto, N., Application of Alcohols from Biomass and their Alternatives as Motor Fuels in Brazil, ibid. 

Acohol fuels - [ALCOHOL FUELS] (Vol 1) - [ALCOHOL FUELS] (Vol 1) - [ALCOHOL FUELS] (Vol 1) -as motor fuels [GASOLINE AND OTHER MOTOR FUELS] (Vol 12)... 

To illustrate these points, let us consider the synthesis of methanol (methyl alcohol) from a carbon monoxide-hydrogen mixture called synthesis gas. This reaction is likely to become increasingly important as methanol and its mixtures with gasoline find greater use as motor fuels. The balanced reaction is... 

In the standard method, the metal enclosure (called the air chamber) used to hold the hydrocarbon vapors is immersed in water before the test, then drained but not dried. This mode of operation, often designated as the wet bomb" is stipulated for all materials that are exclusively petroleum. But if the fuels contain alcohols or other organic products soluble in water, the apparatus must be dried in order that the vapors are not absorbed by the water on the walls. This technique is called the dry bomb" it results in RVP values higher by about 100 mbar for some oxygenated motor fuels. When examining the numerical results, it is thus important to know the technique employed. In any case, the dry bomb method is preferred. 

Alternative fuels fall into two general categories. The first class consists of fuels that are made from sources other than cmde oil but that have properties the same as or similar to conventional motor fuels. In this category are fuels made from coal and shale (see Fuels, synthetic). In the second category are fuels that are different from gasoline and diesel fuel and which require redesigned or modified engines. These include methanol (see Alcohol fuels), compressed natural gas (CNG), and Hquefted petroleum gas (LPG). 

Propjiene [115-07-17, CH2CH=CH2, is perhaps the oldest petrochemical feedstock and is one of the principal light olefins (1) (see Feedstocks). It is used widely as an alkylation (qv) or polymer—ga soline feedstock for octane improvement (see Gasoline and other motor fuels). In addition, large quantities of propylene are used ia plastics as polypropylene, and ia chemicals, eg, acrylonitrile (qv), propylene oxide (qv), 2-propanol, and cumene (qv) (see Olefin POLYMERS,polypropylene Propyl ALCOHOLS). Propylene is produced primarily as a by-product of petroleum (qv) refining and of ethylene (qv) production by steam pyrolysis. 

Mobil Oil Corporation has developed a process on a pilot scale that can successfully convert methanol into 96 octane gasoline. Although methanol can be used directiy as a transportation fuel, conversion to gasoline would eliminate the need to modify engines and would also eliminate some of the problems encountered using gasoline—methanol blends (see Alcohol fuels Gasoline and other motor fuels). 

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