[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 100 (Thursday, July 27, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7814-S7816]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             A COMPILATION OF INFORMATION ON ETHANOL ETHERS

  Mr. KERREY. Mr President, I would like to note the release of a 
recent publication that all members of Congress should read. This new 
publication was produced by the Clean Fuels Development Coalition and 
it includes a presentation of facts about ethanol-based ethers.
  As we attempt to deal with the water contamination problems resulting 
from leaking underground storage tanks, much of the debate is focusing 
on methanol-based ethers, i.e. MTBE. While MTBE has played an important 
role in reducing ozone throughout the U.S., the problems of water 
contamination have lead many to advocate limiting or even banning this 
product.

[[Page S7815]]

 During this debate a few of our colleagues have expressed confusion 
about the technical characteristics of ethanol-based ethers, like ETBE. 
Some have assumed that ethanol-based ethers have characteristics 
identical to MTBE. As both the Senate and House examine this issue, it 
is important to be aware of the significant differences between the two 
products.
  For example, ethanol is a renewable, biodegradable product. When 
converted into ether, ETBE has many favorable characteristics in terms 
of the way it reacts in soil, water, and air, when compared to MTBE. In 
the event ETBE escapes into the atmosphere or our water supplies, it 
can be cleaned up much more efficiently than MTBE. ETBE is far less 
persistent than MTBE and remediation technologies have shown to be very 
effective.
  Understanding the attributes of ETBE is also important at a time when 
every citizen is painfully aware of our dependence on imported 
petroleum and the relationship of supply and price. It may be possible 
to use ETBE in volumes up to 22 percent in gasoline. This addition of a 
clean, domestic fuel could significantly impact our gasoline supply 
situation, particularly in our most heavily populated and polluted 
urban areas.
  I have long been a supporter of ETBE and while there are a number of 
technical and market challenges remaining before this fuel reaches full 
commercialization, its promise is undeniable. The petroleum industry, 
environmental groups, ethanol producers, and the auto industry have 
long recognized the superior qualities of ETBE. For that promise to be 
realized we need to ensure that ETBE is not included in any ban or 
limitation of fuels that result from leaking underground storage tank 
problems. I commend the Clean Fuels Development Coalition for their 
continued support of this important fuel as well as my own state of 
Nebraska which has more than a decade of experience in ETBE 
development.
  Mr. President, at this time I would ask unanimous consent that a copy 
of the Clean Fuels Development Coalition fact book on ETBE be entered 
into the Congressional Record.


                             ETBE FACT BOOK

       The U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information 
     Administration projects U.S. Oil imports could grow to nearly 
     60-70 percent of total U.S. Oil consumption by the year 2010 
     if new U.S. Policies are not adopted to reverse current 
     trends or if world crude oil prices decline. According to the 
     American Petroleum Institute, the U.S. Is currently dependent 
     of foreign oil for 51.8 percent of its energy needs. 
     Currently, 46.7 percent of the imports come from OPEC 
     countries, with 19.1 percent originating from the Persian 
     Gulf region.
       Historically, market prices have been the primary argument 
     driving the dependence on cheap crude oil imports and the 
     perceived aversion to the alternative fuels. The market price 
     of crude oil can be very misleading because it excludes 
     external costs associated with its use, such as environmental 
     and military costs. The actual cost of oil, including 
     external costs, is estimated to be over $100 per barrel or 
     about $3-$5 per gallon of gasoline, according to the U.S. 
     General Accounting Office.
       R. James Woolsey, former director of the Central 
     Intelligence Agency, believes that the world's dependence on 
     oil from the Middle East and the Caspian Basin is one of the 
     three major threats to America's national security, along 
     with attacks from rogue nations and terrorism.
       According to General Accounting Office estimates, at 
     current capacity, fuel ethanol and other oxygenates could 
     displace about 305,000 barrels of petroleum per day used to 
     produce gasoline. The total amount of petroleum that ethanol 
     could displace would be approximately 3.7 percent of 
     estimated U.S. Gasoline consumption in 2000. New presidential 
     and Congressional initiates envision tripling these 
     percentages by 2010.
       Energy production and use accounts for 80 percent of air 
     pollution and 66 percent of the human contribution to global 
     warming. Gasoline obviously accounts for a majority of 
     energy, and specifically, oil consumption. Displacing 
     gasoline with a renewable, less toxic, CO2-
     friendly, domestically produced fuel represents good 
     environmental policy.
       Each bushel of corn used to produce ethanol is 100 percent 
     pure profit for the country. The ethanol industry makes $4.50 
     worth of products out of a $2.25 bushel of corn, doubling its 
     value, enriching the national economy and displacing foreign 
     oil. This improves the U.S. balance of trade payments by 
     several billion dollars, and increases the value of U.S. 
     Grain production. In the future, emerging cellulose 
     conversion technology will make it possible for the entire 
     country to function as a transportation fuel producer using 
     alternative energy crops--switchgrass in Montana, sorghum in 
     Oklahoma, sycamores in Louisiana, poplars in Vermont and 
     waste biomass in New York.
       In addition to stimulating the economy, ethanol helps 
     reduce the federal deficit. The United States General 
     Accounting Office (GAO) issued a report stating that a 
     doubling of ethanol production would save the federal 
     government $500 million to $600 million annually.
       Despite ethanol's benefits, it has had problems entering 
     the U.S. Gasoline pool. Due to difficulties with 
     transportation regional fuel specifications and a increase in 
     fuel vapor pressure, ethanol blends have been used mostly in 
     the Midwest. But there is a way to combine the benefits of 
     ethanol into a fuel additive that would be better accepted by 
     the nation's refiners--producing ethyl tertiary butyl ether, 
     ETBE.
       By combining ethanol with isobutylene, which is derived 
     from natural gas liquids or petroleum products, ETBE offers 
     refiners, agriculture and policy makers another avenue to get 
     the benefits of ethanol into gasoline and minimize many of 
     its current obstacles.
       The vast majority of ethanol is sold in the Midwest region 
     of the United States. Ethanol blends are doing a great job 
     reducing carbon monoxide and air toxic pollution. However, 
     the more populated cities on the East and West Coasts face 
     tougher emission standards that are primarily based on 
     reducing the vapor pressure of gasoline. ETBE has the lowest 
     vapor pressure of oxygenates available in the marketplace and 
     a high octane level. Compared to other additives, including 
     ethanol alone, it reduces more evaporative and tailpipe 
     emissions, and lowers toxics and carbon monoxide. The U.S. 
     Department of Energy found ``significant benefits'' to using 
     ETBE made from biomass, especially in California.
       Each gallon of ETBE displaces a barrel of imported oil and 
     reduces the amount of oil that refiners use to make gasoline. 
     Each gallon of ETBE helps the U.S. reduce its $52 billion oil 
     import bill, stimulates the national economy and improves our 
     balance of trade. Turning lower-valued domestic natural gas 
     into high valued liquid fuel products can help areas of the 
     country that have suffered from America's dramatic decline in 
     crude oil production. American agriculture, working in 
     cooperation with domestic natural gas producers to produce 
     leaner domestic fuels, is a powerful combination of allies 
     and resources.
       Making ETBE can stretch our domestic fuel supplies. Using 
     our natural gas resources and increasing the output of our 
     domestic refineries is an important part of our energy 
     security strategy. Using natural gas as a liquid in existing 
     vehicles will displace imports much faster than waiting for 
     consumers to switch to dedicated natural gas fuel vehicles.
       Recent University of Nebraska-Lincoln studies indicate that 
     ETBE is several times less soluble than MTBE, and several 
     times more biodegradable. Compared with MTBE, ETBE, and/
     ethanol mixtures are less likely to reach groundwater 
     supplies, and are more easily removed by natural attenuation 
     and bioremediation, according to preliminary study results.
       As automakers continue to be burdened with reducing 
     emissions, their ability to provide car that are cleaner, yet 
     still guaranteed to perform, is challenged. ETBE helps 
     automakers get cleaner fuels that have lower sulfur, less 
     toxics and improved driveability index. While ethanol blends 
     help in this area, automakers prefer the use of ethers such 
     as ETBE.
       The idea of ETBE is not new. In an effort to reduce the 
     dangerously high levels of pollution in Paris, the French 
     Parliament voted to have a renewable content standard for its 
     gasoline. The choice to meet the new renewable standard--
     ETBE. Lyondell Chemical Company is the world leader in ETBE 
     production technology. Other companies have also produced and 
     sold ETBE in limited quantities in the United State. Amoco 
     produced and sold ETBE at its Yorktown, VA, refinery for 
     several years and marketed the blends on the East Coast. 
     Lyondell Chemical, formerly Arco Chemical Co., the world's 
     largest methyl tertiary butyl ether producer, has produced 
     ETBE several times at its MTBE plants in the U.S. In fact, 
     all of the MTBE plants in the United States could easily 
     produce ETBE with only minor adjustments to optimize 
     performance.
       The use of MTBE in the reformulated gasoline program has 
     resulted in growing detections of MTBE in drinking water. The 
     majority of these detections to date have been well below 
     levels of public health concern. Detections at lower levels 
     have, however, raised consumer concerns about taste and odor.
       The EPA Blue Ribbon Panel on Oxygenates considered the fuel 
     applications and technical characteristics of MTBE and other 
     ethers during public sessions in 1999. The panel concluded 
     that ETBE and other ethers have been used less widely and 
     studied less than MTBE. The panel's final report states that, 
     ``To the extent that they have been studies, they (other 
     ethers) appear to have similar, but not identical, chemical 
     and hydrogeologic characteristics. The panel recommends 
     accelerated study of the health effects and groundwater 
     characteristics of these compounds. . .''
       In response to anticipated questions abut the hydrogeologic 
     characteristics of ETBE, the Department of Chemical 
     Engineering at the University of Nebraska conducted 
     preliminary research into the behavior of ETBE in water. The 
     preliminary research suggests that ETBE's ubiquity properties 
     are less

[[Page S7816]]

     than half those of MTBE. In addition, a preliminary report by 
     the University notes that existing literature suggests a 
     faster degradation rate for ETBE than MTBE. The Nebraska 
     Ethanol Board and several federal agencies have proposed 
     additional research on the properties of ETBE.
       Starting this year, federal Phase II reformulated gasoline, 
     RVG, must deliver a four percent to seven percent reduction 
     in NOX emissions relative to the 1990 baseline 
     gasoline. ETBE is particularly well suited for meeting this 
     requirement because ETBE can reduce aromatic content in RFG. 
     Automobile NOX emissions decrease with increasing 
     octane number and with decreasing aromatics content. ETBE 
     fills the bill on both counts.
       ETBE's higher octane--110-112 (R+M)/2--enables an RFG 
     blender to substitute ETBE for aromatics, including benzene, 
     as a source of RFG octane. Reducing aromatics content, in 
     turn, reduces emissions of NOX and toxics, 
     while improving driveability performance.
       For U.S. Refiners, this means more reduction--via 
     dilution--in the levels of aromatics, olefin, and sulfur, all 
     of which are undesirable in RFG.
       Petroleum use for transportation will remain one of the 
     largest contributors of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. 
     Through the year 2020, according to projections by the U.S. 
     Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration. In 
     2020, petroleum will account for 42 percent of greenhouse gas 
     emissions in the U.S., mostly for transportation use, 
     according to the report. Overall, carbon emissions from 
     energy use will increase at an average annual rate of 1.3 
     percent due to rising energy demand and slow penetration of 
     renewable, DOE said in its Annual Energy Outlook: 2000 
     report.
       Because ETBE is made from renewable ethanol and natural gas 
     feedstock, it is superior in reducing greenhouse gas 
     emissions. In addition, because the use of ETBE often 
     replaces aromatics from the gasoline pool, its ability to 
     reduce the harmful pollutants as well as greenhouse gas 
     emissions from gasoline are improved.
       As a result of the addition of renewable ethanol, ETBE is 
     an oxygenated fuel. In addition, ETBE has a higher octane 
     rating and lower Reid vapor pressure, RVP, than its 
     competitor, MTBE. ETBE blended gasoline has several benefits:
       The oxygen reduces carbon monoxide emissions.
       The lower Rvp lessens pollution that forms ozone.
       Simply through volumetric displacement, ETBE reduces 
     sulfur, toxic substance and other harmful elements of 
     gasoline.
       The high octane rating reduces the need for carcinogenic 
     hydrocarbons used to increase octane such as benzene, which 
     cause cancers.
       Due to ethanol's positive energy balance when produced from 
     grain (1 to 1.3) and cellulose (1 to 2), it reduces 
     greenhouse gases.
       One of the primary reasons ethanol has difficulty competing 
     in the federal RFG program is that it increases the 
     volatility of gasoline. By turning ethanol into ETBE, this 
     concern is eliminated. ETBE's blending properties are an 
     excellent match for both engine and emissions performance, 
     much better than replacing MTBE with more alkylates.
       Another issue with ethanol is transportation. Currently in 
     the U.S., ethanol blended gasoline cannot practically be 
     shipped to markets via pipelines--the most common method of 
     transportation for petroleum products. Gasoline blended with 
     ETBE is compatible with the current gasoline distribution 
     system, can be pipelined and stored with gasoline and will 
     reduce the transportation and storage costs associated with 
     ethanol usage.
       ETBE can be blending at volumes of up to 17 vol%, with the 
     possibility of the maximum blending being increased to 22 
     vol%, while straight ethanol is capped at 10 vol% and MTBE is 
     limited to 15 vol%. This means that blending gasoline with 
     ethanol can stretch our nation's gasoline supply further.
       The higher allowable volume of ETBE means:
       ETBE blends may prove to be the most cost-effective means 
     of bringing the use of alternative fuels to the market place, 
     consistent with new environmental and energy policy, EPACT, 
     demands being placed on U.S. refiners.
       ETBE blends contain more volume derived from renewable, 
     domestic energy sources.
       While ethanol plays an important role in the federal RFG 
     program, its use is mostly confined to the few RFG areas in 
     the Midwest. Through ETBE, ethanol use could expand to play a 
     larger role in the RFG program as a whole.
       If ETBE could capture only a small portion of the U.S. 
     Gasoline market--for example a percentage of the RFG demand 
     in the Northeast, where little of no ethanol is currently 
     used--the increase in ethanol used in gasoline would be 
     significant.
       As much as 350 million gallons of new ethanol demand would 
     be created if just 60 percent of the oxygenates used in the 
     eight states of the Northeastern States for Coordinated Air 
     Use Management, NESCAUM, were to use ETBE.
       Along with the increase in ethanol use comes a likely 
     increase in corn demand to produce the ethanol. More than 140 
     million bushels of corn would be required to meet the 
     aforementioned ETBE demand.
       ETBE has been in commercial production in Europe since the 
     early 1990s. While France is the European leader for both the 
     production and consumption of ETBE, other European countries 
     are following. European policy makers prefer ETBE to MTBE 
     because of its overall greenhouse gas reductions that come 
     from its renewable ethanol content. ETBE is preferred over 
     ethanol by European refiners because of better logistics and 
     improved gasoline and drive ability quality.
       In addition, more ether demand is expected with the new 
     European cleaner-burning fuel legislation taking effect in 
     2000 and 2005.
       The Clean Fuels Development Coalition is a non-profit 
     organization dedicated to the development of alternative 
     fuels and technologies to improve air quality and reduce U.S. 
     Dependence on imported oil. The broad CFDC membership 
     includes ethanol and ether producers, agricultural interests, 
     automobile manufacturers, state government agencies, and 
     engineering and new technology companies. Since its beginning 
     in 1988, the coalition has become a respected source of 
     information for state, local, and federal policy makers as 
     well as private industry on a range of transportation, 
     energy, and environmental issues.

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