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JAN
15
What is E85 Fuel?
The fuel used in the V8 Supercar series this year will be E85 and that raises a number of questions. What exactly is E85? How is it different to the previous fuel? Why use it? And the list goes on. I'd like to take a moment to try to explain some of the questions fans have been asking. I have written articles on the problems encountered by automotive technicians with the use of ethanol in fuels, so if you think you may have read some of this previously, it's not plagiarism, I am merely reusing what I have written previously. The first question is easy to answer - E85 is 85% ethanol and 15% petrol. It is not a fuel with which the Australian consumer is familiar, however. The nearest we have to this in Australia is E10, which is 10% ethanol and 90% petrol. E85 is not a new fuel. It has been used in Brazil and other parts of the world for many years. This brings us to the question of what is ethanol. The chemical formula for ethanol is C2H6O (you really wanted to know that). Also called ethyl alcohol or grain alcohol, it is the intoxicating ingredient found in alcoholic beverages. Essentially, it is distilled from the fermentation of sugars or starches (most frequently from sugar cane or corn). Brazil, the world leader in production of ethanol, uses a variety of ethanol blends in their fuel. Holden export to Brazil a Commodore specifically modified to accommodate the higher levels of Ethanol used there so the fuel and the issues associated with its use are by no means unknown in Australia. V8 Supercars have turned to E85 as a method of promoting the "greening" of the racing. Ethanol is a renewable energy source (although some would argue that cutting down rain forests to produce ethanol isn't really green at all). In general the use of ethanol can be expected to reduce carbon monoxide, exhaust hydrocarbons, particulates, oxides of nitrogen (in some circumstances), and known carcinogens such as benzene. There are, however, expected to be increases in evaporative emissions and other carcinogens such as formaldehyde and acetaldehyde (c'mon, you know you wanted me to tell you that). One of the big issues for the teams is that ethanol has a lower calorific value than petrol which equates to an increase in fuel consumption. This means the teams will need to use bigger fuel lines, pumps and injectors along with a recalibration of the fuel system. E10 is known to increase consumption by up to 5%, E25 around 8% and E40 around 13%. We expect that the V8 Supercars will use around 30% more fuel than last year. The big difference for the fans will be the greater number of pit stops required at the long distance events. Clearly, the better the teams manage the fuel consumption issues, the fewer stops they will require and we expect that this will have a huge bearing on the outcome especially at Bathurst. The days of a strategy involving 4 stops are long gone. How the big haul up mountain straight at full throttle will affect fuel economy is yet to be seen. We would expect that at the very minimum, teams will need to count on 6 stops – it may even be a minimum of 7 stops. No doubt, by the time the long distance races come around, the teams will have their respective strategies all worked out. The teams have been working on the changes needed and we would expect them all to have a pretty good handle on it all by the time the racing starts. The early indications are that the engine power output will be about the same and we can expect that everyone will have found just a little more anyway and so we would not expect the fans to be able to discern any difference in the racing at all. It is going to be an interesting start to the year though. Ethanol has some serious effects on rubber and metals with which it comes into contact. There may be some corrosion and longevity of fuel system and engine parts issues. While nobody is immune from these issues, we certainly don't expect the top-level teams to encounter difficulties, but some of the lower ranked teams may encounter some issues throughout season 2009 as they come to grips with the new fuel. Hopefully this will have answered a few of the questions you have asked and maybe even settled a few bets across the bar and the barbecue as we wait for the start of the 2009 racing year. Oh, and just in case you wanted to know - no it is not advisable to try to run E85 in your street car (unless it has been designed for it). The performance would be considerably reduced and you may well do serious damage to your car in the process. Also, please do not try to distill your own ethanol – this is definitely one of those "don't try this at home" scenarios. |
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Current opinion poll
Championship Series Driver Points
| 1 | James Courtney | Ford | 1947 |
| 2 | Jamie Whincup | Holden | 1827 |
| 3 | Mark Winterbottom | Ford | 1623 |
| 4 | Shane Van Gisbergen | Ford | 1598 |
| 5 | Garth Tander | Holden | 1509 |
Fujitsu Series Driver Points
| 1 | Steve Owen | Holden | 1076 |
| 2 | Tim Blanchard | Ford | 872 |
| 3 | Nick Percat | Holden | 853 |
| 4 | David Russell | Ford | 763 |
| 5 | James Moffat | Ford | 692 |
Teams Championship
| 1 | TeamVodafone | 3306 |
| 2 | Jim Beam Racing | 3108 |
| 3 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | 2682 |
| 4 | Toll Holden Racing Team | 2454 |
| 5 | Ford Performance Racing | 2433 |
Manufacturers Championship
10
06
