DMF, A New Ethanol Alternative
Engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have developed a two-stage process for converting biomass-derived sugar into 2,5-dimethylfuran (DMF), a liquid transportation fuel with 40% greater energy density than ethanol.Interesting. Let the race for the perfect designer biofuel begin.
In addition to its higher-energy content, DMF also addresses other ethanol shortcomings. DMF is not soluble in water and therefore cannot become contaminated by absorbing water from the atmosphere. DMF is stable in storage and, in the evaporation stage of its production, consumes one-third of the energy required to evaporate a solution of ethanol produced by fermentation for biofuel applications.
Unclear from the article how efficient the energy conversion from sugar to DMF is compared to ethanol, or how the economics of it look.
via Green Car Congress
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2 comments:
I don't think we need the perfect fuel, we just need one that can be made at a resonable cost from the resorces that we have, without plundering our top soil or food crops.
Ethanol, Butanol and now DMF are all showing how we can develope things that work in a free market society.
Birney Summers
http://energyboomer.com
Energy Boomer,
I am with you that as long as the economics work and we aren't hindering the environment or food production, that any biofuel is good.
But, the better the biofuel, and the better technology with which we can convert biomass into fuel, the cheaper the biofuel becomes. So, I hope there are lots of researchers out there trying to make the perfect biofuel.
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