What is the energy efficiency of producing gasoline from fossil fuel versus from sugarcane?
You would think that the answer to this question should be pretty cut-and-dried. But, unfortunately, that is not the case. It really depends on what exactly you include in the calculation, how you compare the numbers, and who does it. This page looks to me like they did a pretty good job, though, and the results jibe well with others: http://i-r-squared.blogspot.com/2006/04/energy-balance-for-ethanol-better-than.html Definition: The ratio of the amount of energy you get out divided by the amount of energy it took to make it is called the “energy balance” of the process. Energy balance = (energy produced)/(energy used) For corn ethanol, the energy balance is about 1.3 For crude oil, the energy balance is about 5 For sugar cane ethanol, the energy balance is about 8 Thus, you a better energy balance ratio from sugar than crude (and both are way better than corn). You may ask:
