Effects of biofuels vs. other new vehicle technologies on air pollution, global warming, land use and water

Abstract

The use of biofuels, particularly ethanol, has expanded in the last few years based significantly on the premise that biofuels replacing fossil fuels may reduce global warming and air pollution problems. While this claim is still being debated, the real comparison should be between biofuels and other emerging technologies. It is found here that both corn-E85 (85% ethanol/15% gasoline) and cellulosic-E85 degrade air quality and climate by up to two orders of magnitude more than Battery-Electric Vehicles (BEVs) or Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles (HFCVS) powered by either solar Photovoltaics (PVs), Concentrated Solar Power (CSP), wind, geothermal, hydroelectric, wave, or tidal power. As such, the use of cellulosic or corn ethanol at the expense of the other options will cause certain damage to health, climate, land, and water supply in the future.