Don't Worry, Sonny and Rico, Your Boat Can Run on Orange Peels
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 10. 3.07
Crockett and Tubbs will still be able to speed in their stingers and drive their Ferraris in Florida; the new governor Charlie Christ, who is purported to be an environmentalist, says that they can keep them going with sugar cane and orange peels as fuel. According to Reuters:
"I don't think they're going to have to change at all. I just think they're going to have to change what they use to power it, like ethanol," said Crist, a Republican who took over Florida's governorship in January from Jeb Bush, the younger brother of President George W. Bush.
"My desire is that we would be able to develop more ethanol production from sugar cane, and frankly from citrus waste as well," he said in a telephone interview from Tallahassee during a Reuters Global Environment summit.
"I think Florida can be such a great leader with ethanol that people can continue to enjoy the lifestyle they're accustomed to but we can do it in concert with a responsible approach," said Crist, citing his own ethanol-powered sport utility vehicle.
"You don't have to necessarily feel like you have to compromise or sacrifice or suffer in order to do good if you can do good and enjoy yourself simultaneously." ::Reuters
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Ethanol has a way to go for boating use. Unlike cars that usually turn over their stored fuel every few days or a few weeks, boats may sit idle with the same fuel for a few months. The larger tanks of boats are prone to condensation due to the larger air space and temperature differentials that develop (cool water below and hot baking sun above).
Unlike the cancer causing MTBE additive, ethanol absorbs water. After a couple of months, ethanol separates from the gasoline (phase separation) resulting in a layer of water on the bottom of the tank where the pickup tube draws from. This results in all kinds of problems from rusty cylinders and valves, bad carburetion (fuel air mixing), and other problems. In other words, the boat doesn't run eventually.
In addition, the ethanol acts as a cleanser; any built up crud in the tank goes into the fuel system and clogs fuel filters and small carburetor jets. I have been changing fule filters too often. I have to pull my tanks... relatively easy because my boat has wood decks and room, more 'modern' boats need fiberglass reconstruction after the floors are hacksawed to get the tanks out.
Also, the newer plastic/composite or fiberglass tanks are getting eaten away by the stuff.
Not to mention that fuel lines and pumps need changing more often as they get soft and the diaphragms get weak and develop leaks.
It would be awesome to see electric drive trains developed for marine use. I know there are cool small horespower outboards, but I am talking about larger boats (of which there are plenty out there that need power plants and are a blight on the landscape).
My 2c adjusted for inflation.
vsk