Sunday, September 25, 2011

HAVE A GREAT MONDAY READERS!

No ethanol issues today............just FOOTBALL!

What a weekend for college and pro football! The LSU victory against West Virginia was not pretty, at least for the LSU defense, which gave up more passing yards than they have in a long, long time; BUT, the offense and special teams did what it needed to do to win. And, what a great win for the Saints today against a very good Houston team.

The AP poll has now moved LSU to #1, leap frogging Alabama and Oklahoma! The USA Today and Coaches poll comes in tomorrow. Here is the AP's top 10:

AP Top 25

I thought the following article today from the Wall Street Journal was both honest and also humorous.........the rest of College Football has it appears FINALLY conceded that the SEC is the BEST Conference in the nation:

College Football Surrenders to the SEC

By DARREN EVERSON

Saturday, September 24, 2011

HAPPY SATURDAY & A GREAT WEEKEND READERS!

Big football weekend. Alabama will face their first real test when they take on Arkansas at 2:30 pm today. This will be a very interesting game to see as it relates to what LSU will be seeing towards the end of the season.

Meanwhile, LSU takes on West Virginia on ESPN on ABC at 7:00 pm. This will be the third top 25 opponent LSU plays this season. LSU is favored by 6 points. If our Tigers beat West Virginia in a convincing fashion, it could move them to the #1 ranking on Monday.

GEAUX TIGERS….. GEAUX TIGERS…..GEAUX TIGERS

I think you will find the following article rather interesting. It's a recent study that studies the cost of food products substantial increase in prices in recent years to ethanol production.

Let Them Eat Ethanol and Cash

BY GREG LINDSAY Today (9/22/11)

How biofuels and speculation are driving food prices to scary new heights

Why have global food prices spiked not once, but twice in the last three years, raising the specter of famine and triggering worldwide food riots--including the Arab Spring? Many explanations have been floated, including climate change-related droughts in Australia, volatile oil prices, “food security” export restrictions, and last but not least, feeding China’s strategic pork reserve.

But according to a scientific paper released this morning by the New England Complex Systems Institute, there are only two factors that matter: ethanol and financial speculation.

The former is easier to prove. A drop in the bucket only a decade ago, ethanol will consume a remarkable 40 percent of the U.S. corn crop this year, comprising 16% of world corn production and 4% percent of total grain production overall. The paper’s authors mapped the rise of ethanol production to the steady climb of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Food Price Index since 2004 and found a close fit, much closer than Australia’s droughts (too small), oil price spikes (too late), or China’s craving for pork bellies (big, but not big enough). “Ethanol is much bigger. It’s bigger by a factory of 20,” says Yaneer Bar-Yam, one of the paper’s authors and the president of NECSI.

The paper’s second claim is more controversial. While ethanol is responsible for the long-term increase in baseline prices, it can’t explain the bubble-and-bust dynamics of 2007/2008 and 2010/2011. So NECSI’s researchers set out to build an all-purpose mathematical model of speculative bubbles, feeding it price data to see if there was another close fit.

What they found refutes the OECD’s findings and confirms the suspicions of Harpers’Frederick Kaufman --the repeal of the Commodity Exchange Act of 1936 and the deregulation of commodity futures in 2000 transformed the futures markets from an instrument of liquidity to a place to park one’s money. Instead of being a place where farmers and agricultural businesses set reasonable prices, the markets have become just another place for speculation.

“That regulation had limited the ability of investors to invest beyond a certain amount,” says Bar-Yam. “Its repeal enabled the index funds, which in turn opened the door to people who were not in the agricultural investment business to go into the commodities markets of corn, wheat, and so on.”

All of that money--commodity index holdings soared from $13 billion in 2003 to $317 billion in 2008--inevitably caused distortions in the market. “If you look at our figures, you’ll see there’s a huge difference between the futures price or the spot price and what should be the equilibrium one,” Bar-Yam says.

The authors’ recommendations are straightforward and immediate--to drive down prices for the world’s poor, governments must restore financial regulations (including the Commodity Exchange Act) and begin winding down ethanol production. “There is a moral imperative here,” says Bar-Yam. “And from an economic standpoint, efficient allocation and optimality are desirable things,” neither of which are currently being served. And if they don’t, as the authors noted last month in a related paper, the turmoil of Arab Spring may go global.

Read more columns like this in our continuing series, The Butterfly Effect

I don't post on Sundays........so, be back on Monday. Have a GREAT weekend!

"Pete" Landry.................comments welcome at way2gopete@yahoo.com

Thursday, September 22, 2011

HAPPY FRIDAY READERS!

Another question I am asked from time to time is "where can I find an ethanol test kit". I've updated an article I wrote back in 2009 to include another supplier I recently learned about.

I know there are certainly probably more ethanol test kits on the market than the ones I list in this article. These can be a starting point to determine which one works for your situation and how much you are willing to pay for a test kit.

These are several sites and companies I’ve found which sell kits to test for ethanol in gasoline. I’m sure there may be more. I personally own the test kit sold by “Fuel-Testers” and have used it frequently. It is simple to use and produces easily viewed test results. It is easily cleaned and can be used over and over. The kit contains a “Quik-Check solution” which gives you a quick “spot test” by adding a single drop of the check solution to the fuel. If the color turns bright blue, ethanol is present. Instructions are included with the kit. There are other test kits that work very well also. I suggest you view the websites and make your own mind as which test kit best suits your needs and costs.

All ethanol fuel test kits are based on the premise that the ethanol in the gasoline will migrate to the water in the test kit tube. The tubes are calibrated and require that a certain amount of clean water be added first, then the prescribed amount of the gasoline to be tested. Then the tube is capped, shaken several times, and then allowed to settle (2-5 minutes usually). After the water/gasoline layers phase separate, the increase in volume of the lower water layer, if any, will be an indication of the amount of ethanol in the fuel tested. Most test kit tubes are calibrated to give you the results in percentage of ethanol present, if any. The test kit should be cleaned after use and stored for the next use.

CAUTION: As you are aware, gasoline is very flammable, so handle accordingly. Use care to avoid any open flame and avoid static electrical charge situations that could create a spark.

Ethanol fuel test kits:

Company: Outboard Wizard Marine Shop (678) 935-1998)

Link: http://www.theoutboardwizard.bizhosting.com/alcohol_fuel_test_kit.html

Cost: $24.95 + ? $ S+H

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Company: Fuel-Testers (678) 935-1998

Link: http://www.fueltestkit.com/

Cost: $ 24.95 + $7 S&H

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Company: Etha-Test

Link: http://www.bidlist.org/Etha-Test/

Cost: $8.95 + S&H

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Company: EAA (920-426-4843)

Link: http://www.eaa.org/autofuel/autogas/test_kit.asp

Cost: $ 25.00 + $5 S&H

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Company: Ebay Motors

Link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=270606859688&crlp=1_263602_263622&ff4=263602_263622&viewitem=&guid=924e0d2b1260a0e201903730fe7d9a25&rvr_id=133367129600&ua=WXS%3F&itemid=270606859688

Cost: $ 8.95 + $2 S&H

=================================================

Ethanol Fuel Testing

Determining ethanol content in blended gasoline fuels

by James W. Hebert (credit given to Mr. Hebert)

This article presents a simple and inexpensive test procedure for determining the alcohol and water content of blended gasoline fuels.

Blended Gasoline

More and more gasolines sold for automotive and marine use are blended fuels consisting of gasoline and ethanol in a solution. In most cases the ethanol content of the fuel is less than ten-percent. In some states there is no labeling requirement, so consumers have no way to determine if the fuel they are purchasing contains any ethanol at all. Generally, in all states fuels which contain greater than ten-percent ethanol have to be labeled at the retailer's pump. Because many boaters use older engines which were not designed to run on blended fuels, they may wish to avoid any gasoline blends with ethanol.

How much water a fuel can hold in solution before phase separaton occurs depends on its blend. Gasoline blended with ethanol can hold more water in solution than pure gasoline. Gasohol, or E10, or gasoline and ethanol in a 9:1 blend, can hold about 0.5-percent water in solution. Any more water content and the water will separate. This principle forms the basis for a simple test procedure.

Test Procedure

A simple test can determine the ethanol or water content of a fuel sample. All that is needed is a sample of the fuel, some water, and a test tube or graduated cylinder. The procedure is as follows:

Obtain a sample of the fuel to be tested
Fill a test tube or graduated cylinder with water in a volume of 25-percent of the total volume
Fill the remaining 75-percent volume of the test tube or cylinder with the sample fuel
Install a rubber stopper and shake the test tube or cylinder to thoroughly mix the test sample with the water.
Place the test tube or cylinder in an upright and stable position, and allow the solution to separate into two phases.
If the test sample of fuel contained any water or alcohol, it will have come out of solution with the gasoline and into solution with the water. Observe the position of the phase boundary and deduce the change in volume according to the formula below, or

If using a calibrated cylinder, read the alcohol content of the original sample from the graduations on the cylinder

"Pete" Landry............................comments welcome: way2gopete@yahoo.com

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

HAPPY THURSDAY READERS!

I hope some of our Mississippi readers were able to tune into the Paul Gallo radio talk show Wednesday morning on "SuperTalk Mississippi" radio. I participated for about 25 minutes from about 8:15 to 8:45 am answering Paul's questions and also call in questions from listeners. I do hope it turned to be informative for listeners. The "SuperTalk" website is: www.supertalk.fm

I continue to get asked why is ethanol gas being sold and what determines how much ethanol gas must be sold. I originally developed the following article in 2009 and updated it a few days ago. I do hope this answers the questions.

Why is ethanol gasoline being sold?

By "Pete" Landry December 21, 2009 (Updated 9/20/11)
The Federal Environmental Protection Agency Regulation (EPA-40CFRPart80) titled “Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Renewable Fuel Standard Program” of 2005 mandates the use of “renewal fuels” in motor fuels. The following is a brief summary taken directly from the regulation: “SUMMARY: Under the Clean Air Act, as amended by Section 1501 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the Environmental Protection Agency is required to promulgate regulations implementing a renewable fuel program. The statute specifies the total volume of renewable fuel that the regulations must ensure is used in gasoline sold in the U.S. each year, with the total volume increasing over time. In this context, this program is expected to reduce dependence on foreign sources of petroleum, increase domestic sources of energy and help transition to alternatives to petroleum in the transportation sector. The increased use of renewable fuels such as ethanol and biodiesel is also expected to have the added effect of providing an expanded market for agricultural products such as corn and soybeans. Based on our analysis, we believe that the expanded use of renewable fuels will provide reductions in carbon dioxide emissions that have been implicated in climate change. Also, there will be some reductions in air toxics emissions such as benzene from the transportation sector, while some other emissions such as oxides of nitrogen are expected to increase. This action finalizes regulations designed to ensure that refiners, blenders and importers of gasoline will use enough renewable fuel each year so that the total volume requirements of the Energy Policy Act are met. Our rule describes the standard that will apply to these parties and the renewable fuels that qualify for compliance. The regulations also establish a trading program that will be an integral aspect of the overall program, allowing renewable fuels to be used where they are most economical while providing a flexible means for obligated parties to comply with the standard. DATES: This final rule is effective on Sept. 1, 2007. The incorporation by reference of certain publications listed in the rule is approved by the Director of the Federal Register as of Sept. 1, 2007. Through today's final rule, we are putting in place a compliance and enforcement program that implements the renewable fuel program, also known as the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. This program accomplishes the statutory goal of increasing the volume of renewable fuels that are required to be used in vehicles in the U.S. as required in Section 211(o) of the Clean Air Act (CAA) enacted as part of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (the Energy Act or the Act). This final rule resulted from a collaborative effort with stakeholders, including refiners, renewable fuel producers and distributors, who together helped to design a program that is simple, flexible, and enforceable.” Each year, the EPA publishes the required percentage of ethanol/renewal fuel additives refiners must use the following year. For 2009, refiners are required to sell 10.21 percent of their total fuels sold as “renewal fuel” (in our area the additive is ethanol). This percentage is intended to increase yearly. The link to the 2009 requirements is http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-AIR/2008/November/Day-21/a27613.htm

In 2011, the EPA’s RFS standard requires refineries to sell 8.01% of their total fuels sold as “renewal fuels”.

Here is the link for the 2011 requirements: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fuels/renewablefuels/420f10056.htm#3

total of 14 billion gallons of ethanol must be sold in 2011 per the EPA’s 2011 mandate. Based on the US consumption of gasoline at 140 billion gallons in 2010. The EPA’s mandate peaks out in 2022, when a total of 36 billion gallons of ethanol must be sold. Based on the 140 billion gallons of gasoline consumed, that equates to a total of 26% of total gasoline sales which must be “renewal fuels” in 2022. Since there is very little “bio diesel”, the vast majority of the renewal fuel mandate is met as ethanol blend.

"Pete" Landry Comments welcome: way2gopete@yahoo.com

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

HAPPY WEDNESDAY READERS!

For readers in Mississippi, I will be on the "SuperTalk Mississippi" radio talk show with host Paul Gallo at 8:00 am Wednesday morning. I was invited to join the talk show to discuss my website and the issues revolving around the recently approved 15% ethanol gas. So, tune in if you are in one of the many Mississippi cities that carry the show (www.supertalk.fm to find the station nearest your location).

Then next Wednesday, September 28th, I've been invited to give a presentation on ethanol gasoline issues to the Eunice, Louisiana Rotary Club. Eunice is in St. Landry Parish and is about 45 minutes northwest of Lafayette. Then, on Monday, October 3rd, I was invited to give the same presentation to the Bay Springs, Mississippi (northwest of Hattiesburg) Rotary Club.

If you are aware of an organization that would like to hear this presentation, have them contact me at way2gopete@yahoo.com. The presentation is about 25-30 minutes in length. It covers the history of ethanol gasoline, federal regulations governing this fuel, impact on marine and other engines, and the issues surrounding the recently approved 15% ethanol gas which will likely start showing up in stations early next year, or sooner. I only request that they cover my fuel/mileage expenses, meals and hotel stay if required and a very modest donation to my website operation.

Here is another article showing how livestock producers are hurting from the high price of corn driven up "sky high" by ethanol fuels I thought you might enjoy reading:

Livestock producers face ethanol makers over cost of corn

By Philip Brasher, Gannett Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON --

The flooding and record heat that have combined to shrink this year's corn crop are feeding new calls from livestock producers to weaken the government's ethanol mandates.

Producers told the House Agriculture Committee on Wednesday that tightening grain supplies are driving up feed costs further and threatening to push many poultry farms and others out of business.

"We have serious, immediate concerns about the availability and cost of feed ingredients caused by the mandated use of corn-based ethanol," said Ted Seger, president of Farbest Foods Inc., a turkey producer in Indiana.

STORY: Car buffs don't like ethanol

More than 20 percent of the chicken industry, as measured by production, has been sold to foreign-owned companies because of bankruptcies in the U.S. industry over the last three years, he said.

The Agriculture Department this week estimated that farmers will harvest 12.5 billion bushels of corn this year, the third-largest crop on record, but that was 3 percent less than the USDA had forecast a month earlier.

With corn supplies tightening, the USDA also estimated usage for feed would be reduced. About 4.7 billion bushels of this year's crop is expected to be used for livestock feed, down from 5 billion bushels for the 2010 harvest.

The price of corn is the major cost of raising livestock, and producers have been trimming herds and flocks as a result of price increases, boosting retail meat prices.

Steve Meyer, an Iowa economist who advises the livestock industry, warned that a bigger crunch could come if there is a widespread drought and crop failure. A 12-percent drop in corn production, roughly half as large as what happened during a drought in the 1980s, would cut the harvest under 12 billion bushels, said Meyer, who testified on behalf of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association.

"We're living on borrowed time from a sometimes-fickle Mother Nature," he said.

He said Congress should provide for an automatic waiver of the annual ethanol mandates in case of a crop failure.

The ethanol industry argues that the mandates are needed to assure investors that there will be a market for the biofuel and that market speculation has a played a major role in driving up the price of corn.

Waiving the ethanol mandates "would lead to inconsistent regulation and sends a bad message to the investment community and producers seeking financing for first-of-its-kind technology," said Rob Skjonsberg, vice president of public policy and corporate affairs for Poet LLC, a leading ethanol producer based in Sioux Falls.

The ethanol industry also argues that livestock producers benefited from buying grain that was kept artificially cheap because of federal crop subsidies that encouraged excess corn production. Federal ethanol policies resulted from corn growers' attempts to find a new market for their crop, said Rep. Steve King, R-Ia. "When things are bad, when things are hard, you start to generate new ideas to try to solve that situation. Ethanol was one of those," King said.

About one-third of the corn that is sold for ethanol production winds up as a byproduct known as distillers grains that can substitute for corn in livestock feed, but poultry and hog producers say they can use the product only in small amounts.

The government promotes the production of corn-based ethanol in three ways -- the usage mandates as well as a tariff on imported ethanol ($0.54/gallon) and a 45-cent-per-gallon subsidy to refiners who blend the biofuel with gasoline. The subsidy and tariff are scheduled to expire at the end of the year, but the mandates would continue, growing to 15 billion gallons a year by 2015 before leveling off.

"Pete" Landry Comments welcome: way2gopete@yahoo.com