ETHANOL AS A RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCE ETHANOL POWERED SHIP ADVANTAGES, CHALLENGES AND DIFFICULTIES The Blue Flame

Circa 2015 marked the first time when the marine transportation industry woke up to a rude shock, and sudden realizations, pertaining to its operability and its duty towards the aquatic eco-system of planet Earth. Not only did it face immense pressure to reduce toxic emissions in compliance with new regulations, but was also forced to address the possibility of fuel shortage in the years to come. The need of the hour was to come up with a viable solution that adequately handled both concerns without having a major impact on operability. After relentless searching and the urgency imposed by the Paris Accord on climate change, soon the answer presented itself in form of ethanol. For the unversed, ethanol is one of the prominent members of the alcohol family, and is a close cousin of methanol, which is just as well-known. On a commercial scale, it is obtained by milling corn, cooking the outcome to segregate the individual sugar components from the starch, and extracting the gas as it exudes from the mix. Ethanol burns with a distinct blue flame that is marked with yellow highlights, and emanates a typical odor. Although almost invisible, in its gaseous form, it is highly volatile and flammable, and when condensed into a liquid, it becomes colorless. Owing to being obtained from plants, it is regarded as being renewable, which explains its categorization under bio-fuels.