| dc.description.abstract | The U.S. ethanol industry grew from practically zero production in the late 1970’s to over 1 billion gallons in 1994, spurred by national energy security concerns, new Federal gasoline standards, and government incentives. In 2006, approximately 4.9 billion gallons of fuel ethanol was produced from corn to be blended with gasoline for use in motor vehicles.The United States has long since been one of the highest consumers of crude oil for transportation purposes in the world and right now imports about 66% of the total oil consumed worldwide. Also, U.S. automobiles and light trucks are responsible for nearly half of all greenhouse gases emitted by automobiles globally. Given all these facts, ethanol has been suggested as a viable alternative to gasoline owing to its environmental and economic advantages.Since the late 1970’s, studies have estimated net energy value of corn ethanol as one of the indicators of sustainability. However, variations in data and assumptions used among the studies have resulted in a wide range of estimates.My project aims at emphasizing the environmental and economic impacts of using corn-ethanol as an alternative fuel in the United States by making more complete assumptions about its life cycle and, thereby, more conclusively answer the question: “Is Corn-Ethanol a sustainable development, Environmentally and Economically.” | |
