Ethanol is ethyl alcohol made by fermenting starch sugars. It has a very high octane number for improved engine performance and cleaner fuel combustion.
Feedstock & Technologies
Conventional ethanol is made from grains (corn, wheat, barley). Advanced (cellulosic) ethanol is made from sorted municipal solid waste and from agricultural and forestry residues. Ethanol has the same chemical properties regardless of whether it is produced from starch or cellulosic-based feedstocks. Corn or wheat grain are the primary North American feedstocks; sugar cane is primarily used in Brazil.
Applications
Blend Compatibility & Applications
E10 has been in the market for over 35 years and is compatible with all light duty vehicles.
E15 is compatible with light duty vehicles from model year 2001 and later.
E85 blends are compatible with FlexFuel light duty vehicles.
E20, E30, and E50 blends are available on a limited basis in US Midwest states.
Ethanol is also a feedstock to produce low carbon aviation fuel, utilizing ‘alcohol to jet’ (ATJ) catalytic conversion technologies that have historically been utilized by petroleum refining and petrochemical sectors.
Key Properties
Energy Content and Mileage
Ethanol contains less energy per gallon than gasoline. Pure ethanol contains about 33% less energy than gasoline.
E10 — Much of the gasoline in Canada contains 10% ethanol. Any vehicle can use E10 and will typically experience a 3% to 4% fuel economy reduction when using
E10 (vs pure gasoline).
E15 — E15 is not retailed in Canada. In 2011, the US EPA approved the use of E15 in model year 2001 and newer gasoline vehicles. Pumps dispensing E15 must be labeled. Vehicles will typically have 4% to 5% lower fuel efficiency on E15 than on 100% gasoline.
E85 — E85 fuel contains between 50% and 83% ethanol. Flex Fuel Vehicles (FFV) operating on E85 get roughly 15% to 30% fewer miles per gallon, depending on ethanol content, than when operating on regular unleaded gasoline. In the US, E30 blends suitable for FFV are also marketed.
Producing and Distributing Members
To find out more details on ABFC members’ facilities, see our Members Map.
References & Related Links
Low-octane gasoline is blended with 10% ethanol to attain the regular gasoline’s 87 octane requirement. To read more on ethanol fuel properties, access Alternative Fuels Data Center.
- CAN/CGSB-3.511-2021 Oxygenated Automotive Gasoline Containing Ethanol (E1-E10 and E11-E15). This standard applies to two grades of oxygenated gasoline in which the oxygenate consists essentially of ethanol.
- CAN/CGSB-3.512-2022, Automotive ethanol fuel (E50-E85). This standard applies to two types of automotive fuel: type 1, 50% to 85% by volume denatured fuel ethanol with gasoline and type 2, 20% to 25% by volume denatured fuel ethanol with gasoline. Both types are for use in flexible-fuel vehicles over a wide range of climatic conditions.