Far from being the first at-home
biofuel kit we've
seen, E-Fuel is hoping to target consumers with a hankering for fueling up their vehicle with homegrown goodness. The Micro Fueler claims to be the first backyard Ethanol brewer made specifically for use at one's abode, and according to the outfit's CEO, the premise behind it is quite simple. By mixing water, sugar and yeast, individuals can receive E100 Ethanol in a matter of hours. More specifically, it's noted that a gallon of fuel can be derived from ten gallons of sugar, and while that may not sound like the most efficient conversion rate in the world, the company is quick to point out that costs can be lowered via federal, state and local credits along with carbon trading coupons. Those eager to start fueling up before they even leave the house can order one now for $9,995, though we're told not to expect shipments until Q4.
posted May 9th 2008 10:05AM
Just don't let the Revenoors know about it!
$10k is a little steep for an autonomous microdistillary. Plus, I doubt they'll get away with selling it to people who don't have a licence to distill. And once you have a licence, the tax-man is watching.
Though, apparently an ethanol fuel licence is cheaper and less regulated than a beverage licence.
Where's the one that will let me use grass clippings? Now THAT would be green.
...am gonna wait for the one that makes money.
Wait, so taxpayers at the federal, state, and local level are all going to subsidize a-holes who want to make fuel from sugar? So people who use gasoline get taxed and $hitheads who use food for fuel get subsidies?
People who advocate using food for fuel, be they hippies or greedy corporate bastards, should all be publicly shot.
+1
Right on.
Don't drive-up the cost of my sugar-filled Coke by attacking sugar for fuel!
Now come on be nice to the people using and giving the OK to use our limited food supply to make fuel, these are more important people then everyone else on the planet especially the people starving all around the world because they can't afford to buy food. Who's really impressed that they get to drive around in there gas guzzlers? Oh ya only the other Jack&$$'s that drive similar vehicle's.
i agree, the world needs to first be able to feed EVERYONE before rich countries begin using food for fuel instead of feeding less fortunate individuals.
E-fuel is NOT the answer for a new energy system because it has the same limitations as oil: It has a finite supply. While it can be regrown each year we only have so much farmland. Our farmland will not grow along with our demand for more energy like other types will. Solar and wind can both be made more efficient at capturing and transforming the limitless supply of energy into usable energy for us.
Amen brother. This whole bio-fuel craze is the most insane thing to come around for decades.
Ethanol is definitely not a perfect solution, but it's amazing how quickly it became a whipping boy.
"agree, the world needs to first be able to feed EVERYONE before rich countries begin using food for fuel instead of feeding less fortunate individuals."
Um.... how is the food going to get from the rich countries to the poor ones? Magic? Teleportation? Most actual analysts as opposed to bloggers believe current food issues are more related to high fuel costs and political issues than lack of arable land. And current land could be much more efficiently used if we could get fertilizer, seeds, and know-how to poorer countries. And all that takes fuel. I'm pretty tired of this "ethanol is food directly out of someone's mouth" talk. It's like saying "How dare someone who only has $10 for food waste money on a bus pass!' they should walk to the convenience store for $5 beef jerky instead of taking the bus to the supermarket? And yes, locally grown food, organic farming, etc, etc... The simple fact is, things aren't as simple as "food or fuel" and we shouldn't be flogging people for trying to innovate in areas that don't meet your personal holy grail of energy production (oh, and solar and wind aren't perfect. Fusion is nice, but let's actually see it). How about we keep trying things and see what works?
That said, this thing is probably not going to work. I mean, really.
I'm not opposed to generating fuel from food because I have some dumb notion that it is going to cause starvation. I am against it because it is so inefficient that it costs us more than we get out of it.
I agree!! These biofuels are quickly becoming the wrong thing to do. Big mistake by our "leaders". Not a good time for this company to be entering the market with such a thing - wonder if they will sell any - probably not. Ten grand buys a lot of gasoline - even at today's prices.
hey, there are more things to consider. our military expenditures are tax dollars going to securing the oil. if that was applied to the price, oil would be a lot more expensive.
then there is the issue of dead soldiers securing our oil, which god put under their sand. but im a veteran, and i know nobody gives a shit about them.
E100 is not the same thing as E85.
Ethanol has the potential to corrode the tubes inside cars that are not designed for it - thats why you can't use E85 with older cars - especially those not built with Flex technology. E100 will eat away at your fluid hoses and DESTROY your engine.
Someone who posts after me can list all the available E100 vehicles.
1. Forumula 1 race car =P
Delegate much? lol
@tom
If that is true that is quiet an interesting fact
HELLO BRAZIL!
"Most automobiles in Brazil run either on alcohol (E100) or on gasohol (E25) since the governement made mandatory the use of 24% ethanol in the blend sold in the entire country. Since 2003, dual-fuel ("Flex-Fuel") or full flex-fuel vehicles that run on any proportion of ethanol and gasoline have been gaining popularity, reaching 5 million new cars and light commercial vehicles by March 2008"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in_Brazil
Well, no shit. See, it makes E100, then you take that E100 and put it in your gas tank along with gasoline to achieve your desired blend. Were you expecting it to make E85 out of sugar?
@Craig-
Doesn't that defeat the clean image of a backyard fueling station? If I'm spending $10k on a fuel producing system, and another several grand on sugar ($40/gallon of ethanol), I want fuel I can use!
@Todd. If you can use E100 go ahead. My point was that as usual Flashpoint opened his mouth before engaging his brain. A device that distills alcohol from sugar cannot create E85, because the missing 15 is petrol...
CraigJ
You must be stupid, high, or all of the above.
If I brought up the fact that E85 is different from E100, doesn't it stand to reason that I already know what Ethanol is and what the difference is?
For as long as you see me on Engadget, keep your mouth out my comments because your replies are STUPID and you want to sound smart, but you really aren't.
Besides, when you work in a sweatshop, you aren't supposed to use the computer there to post blogs.
Doesn't it look like an old frigidaire that has been painted?
For every step forward we can make with alternate fuels it seems we instead take five back.
This is absolutely ridiculous. ETHANOL is not going to save America. We cannot realisticly treat the production of Ethanol as we would any other commodity. That is why there is a food shortage right now: the powers that be screwed up and tried to make Ethanol rather than feeding the farm animals.
WHAT WE NEED IS FUSION POWER.
If we put enough research and Development into Fusion, we could come up with a Fusion solution. Problem is, the OIL COMPANIES do their best to retard Fusion R&D because it would produce CHEAPER energy, low radioactive waste (which means storage facilities would lose money) and Fusion would ultimately be the perfect replacement for the oil infrastructures.
Sure it would cost a Trillion dollars (or possibly 3) but it would ramaticaly improve the quality of life of the entire world.
STOP BEING GREEDY BIG OIL.
uhh, yeah, i don't think anyone thinks ethanol is going to be saving america. america's problems are bigger than just fuel, buddy. we have corrupt and broken down systems in every important branch of the government which is further escalated (and partially caused by) a capitalistic society that has created evolved monopolies where corporations have an uncontrolled influence on most everything. our educational system is in need of some overhauling. health care system mixed with unchecked lawsuits and big pharm greed creating an unstable marriage where the parties can't divorce. dr. phil still still has his own tv show. etc. etc. yeah, i don't think alternative fuel is the saviour here, man.
since america is lacking in the infastructure dept. 'big oil' is the lifesource of the country, with nuclear power we couldve already had ethanol powered cars (ticking time bomb>?immenent doom).
since america is lacking in the infastructure dept. 'big oil' is the lifesource of the country, with nuclear power we couldve already had ethanol powered cars (ticking time bomb>?immenent doom).
since america is lacking in the infastructure dept. 'big oil' is the lifesource of the country, with nuclear power we couldve already had ethanol powered cars (ticking time bomb>?immenent doom).
you can say that again
Problem is you keep buying the oil.
Petroleum is still the cheapest form of energy available. That's why we use it.
shoot, if that's all it takes, i'm going to go ahead and just put sugar in my gas tank now.
is that munsoning yourself?
Thank you ethanol, for pushing up food prices 70% since July.
http://www.bloomberg.com/markets/commodities/cfutures.html
This whole ethanol craze is retarded. If you have 3rd grade math skills, it's easy to count the number of acres of corn needed to make enough ethanol to practically fuel the country, and realize that number is larger than the US. TEN GALLONS OF SUGAR??? And, let's not forget what it's doing to the deterioration of topsoil and contamination of freshwater supplies.
Is it pure ethanol? Or is it something else mixed with it for the production of the fuel? Why I'm asking is that... well...
Can we use the ethanol for other purposes?
word. can we get high off of it?
if we drank it we could put ourselves in our gas tanks and use our bodies for fuel
this really is some good stuff.
Alcohol made from sugar can be consumed, yes. It would be better to bottle the alcohol ans sell it for a profit and then use the proceeds to buy gas...
Ethanol still doesn't make sense and it will take a long time to make back your investment on this idea. Still an interesting idea, but Ethanol still has environmental downsides...
Now 7-Eleven is going to start putting sugar packets behind the counter along with the cigs.
So, how much does 10 gallons of sugar cost (to produce one gallon of fuel)? More than the American average of gasoline a gallon (3.62)???
10 gallons of sugar = 1 box of Fruit Loops
Sam's Club has a 50 lb bag of sugar for $19.18
So cost per gallon would be about $3.84 not includding the cost of water and yeast.
It's cheeper to just buy the gas. For $10K you could get this device or at $4 a gallon you could by 2500 gallons of gas. Depending on your mileage and driving habits that could be enough gas for 3+ years.
Bevo has a great comment, but in truth, according to info at the bottom of the PM story, 1 lb. of sugar costs about $.30 (today). Ten gallons of sugar is approximately 132 lbs. So...
1 gallon of ethanol = 10 gallons of sugar @ $.30/lb = $40/gallon
So after paying $10k for the machine, enjoy paying $40 per gallon (excluding electricity, yeast, and maintenance)!
@Todd: Sad thing is, you're already paying that with the ethanol blended gasoline, through your taxes subsidizing the production of ethanol and increase food prices.
After normalization of relationship with Cuba (new Gummamint, ya know) sugar (and rum!) will be near-free.
$9995 (aw, let's just call it $10K, or £5k for the UK) is one helluva big outlay. Plus at a 1/10th ratio of output to input, plus the production carbon footprint, plus the hike this shite would cause in sugar prices all adds up to a TOTAL WASTE OF TIME!
One for the scrap-heap!
In Florida, they just added 10% ethanol to ALL gasoline. Thanks for the 1 to 7 mpg less! Do I get a rebate for paying the same for an inferior product? Did my per gallon cost go down? No and No.
Imagine if they added 10% water to each gallon of milk but charged you the same.
Ethanol blend gas for everyone that doesn't have a truly compatible car is a complete scam. You also better empty your tank before each fill up so you don't build up alcohol in your tank. A year from now is going to be a great time to be a mechanic or a car dealer.
Interesting. You're saying that ethanol has higher mass than gasoline?
Jeebus:
No I am saying that ethanol mixed gasoline performs less efficiently than regular gas.
If I can drive 25 miles on 1 gallon of regular gasoline, I will only be able to go 24 to 18 miles with ethanol mixed gasoline at the exact same cost per gallon.
a gallon of ethanol contains about 74% of the energy that a gallon of gas does...
I was commenting on your assertion that one should empty the tank completely every time before refilling, presumably because the ethanol is at the bottom of the tank, separated by gasoline which, again presumably, floats to the top, which would require it to have higher mass than gasoline.
When I last ran the #'s it came out to something like $5 a gallon by buying giant bags of sugar at a wholesale club store.
Definitely not worth it unless you have tons of waste alcohol lying around, so if you're a wine producer or a brewery it might be vaguely useful.
If somebody would invent a car that would run on soft drinks, energy problems would be solved. You can buy generic 2 liters for .50, with is about $2.00 a gallon.
Willy Wonka did it - it can't be that hard. Somebody just needs to pose as an oompa loompa and break into his factory to learn how it is done!!
I am available to accept my noble prize at any time. kthxbye
even if you could run a car off of soda...could you imagine the cleanup and maintenance you'd have to do?
SUGAR would clog your valves.
ooo! we could get steel foundries in our back yards, too!
On the other hand, this is actually funny.
They do add water to milk (2%, low-fat, etc) and charge the same ....... doh
quit driving as much and quit buying cars that eat up 60% more gas
SUV's need to be BANNED
Why is your level of gas consumption acceptable?
SUVS BANNED?
Don't be a fool. They serve their purpose but they do it inneficiently. We need alternative fuels or cleaner SUV's.
Its funny how everyone attacked HUMMER H2's but didn't actually realize that an H2 really isn't getting worse gas mileage than an Escalade ESV, or Navigator or Sequioa when you factor in its Cty/Highway Mpg under true driving conditions.
People who are scared of SUV's are these lil' suckas in Civics, Scions, and funny little Japanese cars that would be crushed by an SUV.
How about banning travel over 50 miles per day? A person driving a Civic 50 miles per day is using a helluva lot more gas than a person who drives an SUV 50 miles per week.
Come on people! You gotta be realistic! I know people who can't fit their family in anything less than an SUV. I also know people who can't get to work without driving more than 50 miles a day. In several cases both apply.
It's not the fuel content, or the way people drive, or what they drive that needs to change, it's the engine efficiency that needs to change. Normal engines do not run any where near 100% efficiency. I know, 100% is impossible, but we can at least try for 95% or so, instead of around 50% efficiency.
The point is this: You can't just ban things you don't agree with. And people shouldn't be judged for what they drive or how much they drive or any of that other garbage. The market will drive the need for more fuel efficient vehicles, more fuel efficient habits and energy alternatives.
boy, it's too bad that when ethanol is burnt in internal combustion engines, it creates more, and more dangerous greenhouses gases, that are worse for the environment, animals, and people than an internal combustion engine running on standard gasoline.
lots of things need to happen but when a rich man says ill give you $500,000 if you ignore this new legislation what are you gunna say? If you say no then you need to run for office.
Hell, the people could just boycott oi but then what happens? But just about EVERYTHING is made from oil nowadays. The History Channel put it best, we are living in 'The Oil Age.' Its gunna stay like this until we the oil reaches its tipping point at over $500 a barrel. Thats when we will get alternative sources of energy.
Personally I think it's just a gimic to get around alcohol taxation rules.
Talk about micobrewery.
I haven't seen anyone mention that fact that this machine works in two modes, using the sugar or getting the ethanol from used beer, wine, liquor. Go down to your local restaurant get them to dump glass of the above into a container instead of throwing it away, pick it up and put that in the machine instead. I would imagine that would reduce the cost significantly.
To quote Homer...Simpson:
In America, first you get the sugar, then you get the power, then you get the women.
Damn beat me to it!!
Or in this case, "In America first you get the sugar, then you get the Ethanol, then you get the power. "
If you have one of these in your back yard you don't get the women.
For 10k it better come with a years supply of sugar and yeast!
Today, this morning in fact I disconnected my CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) powered Toyota Camry from the home refueling unit (compressor) in the garage. http://www.myphill.com/
The unit costs about 4 to 5k installed and fuel is about $1.25 a gallon including electricity to run the compressor. Every day I tell O.P.E.C. to Kiss My A$$.
How many gallons of cng does your car hold and what is your range per full tank?
Sim:
My Camry holds 13 Gasoline Gallon Equilevant (GGE) and has a range of about 300 miles per fill.
A new CNG Honda Civic GX is available now that gets better mileage than my old Camry but it has a smaller tank.
http://automobiles.honda.com/civic-gx/
How much conventional energy does it take for this thing to distill your sugar into trendy energy? Don't forget to factor that into your costs.
For roughly 5000 years, this "conventional energy" has been called fermentation. The sugar is the food which the yeast eats. Alcohol is the shit the yeast excretes.
I weep for the future.
You do realize that the amount of energy that went into harvesting all that sugar is about ten times the amount you are saving. Plus it is food that people can use. WTF is this company thinking!?
We'll figure it out one day very soon... but right now stop being silly. Food is not the answer... unless it is scraps, but by then we won't need... roads.
J
Food costs have gone up because shipping costs and transportations costs have gone up. The rising price of oil has effected the cost of food more then the use of corn. Plus ethanol can be easily made from algae. All you need is a sunlamp and some dirty water to grow algae. The yield from algae is way higher then it is from corn. People in other countries don't worry about what happens in this one, so I am not too worried about what's happening in theirs. If the middle east doesn't have food to eat, that's too bad.
A lot of cars ran on ethanol variants up until Prohibition when the laws changed and it made it illegal to make alcohol. If that had never happened and we spent the decades that have gone by doing research to improve fuel efficiency think of where we would be at today? Ethanol gets slightly less mpg from engines that really weren't designed to run it. Give it a few years and the mileage will be up.
There is also a lot of swamp land down in Florida and land other places they are using to grow sugar cane and other crops that can be used to make ethanol. That ethanol has to be made by facilities and people in this country. So aside from being dependent on OPEC for our gas prices we will eventually be able to control our own. We will also be adding hundreds of thousands of jobs which will help people pump more money into the economy overall. There are larger economic upsides to ethanol then just as an alternative fuel source..
Another thing - last time I checked sugar wasn't a staple in my diet. Do we want to feed the world with sugar ? Think about that, a world stricken with diabetes. You guys should do a little more reading before you open your mouth. You can't live on sugar. And ethanol can be made from anything that contains cellulose. It can even be made from cow shit. The corn and food thing is a scam to drive up commodity prices.
Here, let me help you with that
http://www.befreetech.com/sugar_sweet_poison.htm
let me get this right... 10 gallons of sugar... how much does that cost, compared to 1 gallon of gas.
If you get one don't let the tax man know or he'll hit you with fines for not paying the gas tax.
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/599471.html
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/03/illinois_man_fi.php
So you’re telling me that this thing will make gallons of moonshine in my backyard in a couple of hours? Where do I signup?
Ain't not food shortage. World throws away enough food to feed the entire worlds population 3 time over. Only thing missing is the will to get it done (and pay for it).
Might as well do something usefull with the sugar we can't eat (that's what inedible means).
Where's Dr. Emmett Brown when you need him....
I just saw this on the news and came online right away to read about it.They didn't say how much this thing costs,and they also didn't say u need a gallon of sugar per gallon of ethanol.There's no way I'm gonna pay 10k for this.
You people who think ethanol destroys engines are idiots,its better because its higher octane,meanining more stable for high compression and forced induction engines,fuel lines are not going to be ruined,im a engineer in design and mods,get educated you fools and cease the Gay emotional outbursts you all sound like religeous philistiens,ethanol is clean burning as well,your petrols are dosed up with touluene to raise the octane after you idiots claimed that the chemical tetraethallead was a problem,look at what you got!toluene is highly carconigenic...idiots!!!!...
Just a word of caution to all you do-it-yourselfers out there. Having one of these devices will violate about a dozen local fire code and zoning ordinances.
Prior to purchase you may wish to check with your local fire officials to make sure that you can do this.
I suspect that the answer will be a resounding NO. The materials you need to make this work and the end product are regulated because they are listed as Hazardous Materials. (specifically flammable liquids)
A fire will happen to someone and it most likely will result in the insurance company voiding the policy because the individual was using a device that isn't code compliant and may not be UL Listed or FM Approved.
This is not a good idea folks!
Ok, let's get one thing straight--this unit does NOT require 10 "gallons" of sugar to produce one gallon of Ethanol. It requires 10-14 POUNDS of sugar to produce one gallon of Ethanol. This is a big difference!
Formula racers have been using alternate fuels for 80 years. Look at the performance they get. It amazes me how the "PINHEADS" complain about the current gas prices and then compliain about every solution that comes along. There's no making them happy (bitch-bitch-bitch). Every fuel has a down-side. Pick the one with the greatest amount of upsides and go with it. We may have to adjust our lifestyles quite a bit, but hey, grow up!
I guess the automobile sitting in your driveway (with flamable fuel in it) is a violation too? This unit falls under the same regulations as an alternate power source for your house (like a propane or diesel generator). You need to have it inspected, when it's installed, for building code regulations (electrical hookups primarily), and you'll need a building permit while having it installed. You don't need a special permit, or license to operate or own it.
Research is important before purchase, but the largest concerns are with your homeowner's insurance policy. State Farm already covers them. The government subsidizes the purchase up to 50% and your taxes will start to immediately see benefits that weren't there before concerning alternate fuels tax benefits (including your car once you're using the fuel).
I think the amount of sugar is not correct. A gallon equals to 128 oz of sugar. A cup is equal to about 7 oz. Sugar is a solid and should be measured in pounds and ounces. The usual amount for one gallon of water to 1 1/2 of sugar plus yeast to produce alcohol at about 18%. So if one gallon of liquid is 18% alcohol, the result should be about 23 ounces of ethanol. You are better off distilling this yourself for under $200. You will get 195% ethanol. There will be some water but that can be delt with in drying it out and getting 200%.
PHOENIXJMARK