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Everyone agrees that we need to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Is ethanol the answer? Many believe there are better choices such as biodiesel, which yields 93 percent more energy than the fossil energy required for its production. Ethanol yields only 25 percent more.

The DesMoines Register has a good article for those interested in more info: Ethanol Facts Questions

BEIJING, Aug. 25 — A groundbreaking experiment is expected to help China cut down on energy consumption and reduce its reliance on oil.

The nation now has plans to industrialize its homegrown coal-to-petrochemicals technology after the success of a project using the world’s first 10,000-ton DMTO (dimethyl ether/methanol-to-olefin) industrialization equipment.

DMTO is a technology that uses coal or natural gas as a substitute for crude oil to produce olefin produces, such as ethylene and propylene.

Sources said there is already a lot of interest in the technology from firms both in China and abroad.

Full Story: New Tech May Reduce Oil Use in China

The 2007 Mercedes-Benz “Flex-Fuel” C230 Sport sedan can run on a mixture of ethanol and gasoline, or just conventional gasoline. Fuels with up to 85 percent ethanol and only 15 percent gasoline will power this vehicle.

An in-line fuel sensor determines the type of fuel in the system and the vehicles electronic engine management system adjusts automatically to the mixture. In this way, the C230 Sport Sedan can take advantage of renewable bio-fuels such as ethanol. However, since ethanol is not yet available in some areas, the flex-fuel sensor allows the C230 to run on straight conventional gasoline as well.

New features for the 2007 C230 Sport models include a discreet AMG rear deck lid spoiler, dual AMG sport exhaust pipes, and an interior with black Birdseye maple instead of the aluminum trim found in previous models.

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