Accelerating Transportation Decarbonization: The Strategic Role of Ethanol Blends and Regulatory Incentives

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Auteur principal: Curcio, Eliseo
Format: Preprint
Publié: 2025
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author Curcio, Eliseo
author_facet Curcio, Eliseo
contents This study evaluates ethanol blending as a practical near-term strategy for significant transportation decarbonization in the United States. Despite rapid growth in electric vehicle adoption, gasoline is projected to remain dominant, with annual demand around 135 billion gallons by 2035, necessitating immediate complementary solutions. Analysis indicates ethanol use will notably expand, driven by regulatory incentives such as RFS Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) and IRA tax credits (45V), leading to potential market penetration of E15 at about 25% and E85 also expanding substantially. Ethanol derived from waste achieves notably lower carbon intensity at approximately 58.34 gCO2e/MJ, substantially better than conventional gasoline (~92 gCO2e/MJ), providing clear environmental advantages. Economic assessments show robust investor returns and local economic growth driven by policy incentives, including Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) and IRA tax credits (45V). Infrastructure analysis confirms manageable costs and feasible adjustments for widespread adoption of higher ethanol blends.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2504_06278
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Accelerating Transportation Decarbonization: The Strategic Role of Ethanol Blends and Regulatory Incentives
Curcio, Eliseo
General Finance
This study evaluates ethanol blending as a practical near-term strategy for significant transportation decarbonization in the United States. Despite rapid growth in electric vehicle adoption, gasoline is projected to remain dominant, with annual demand around 135 billion gallons by 2035, necessitating immediate complementary solutions. Analysis indicates ethanol use will notably expand, driven by regulatory incentives such as RFS Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) and IRA tax credits (45V), leading to potential market penetration of E15 at about 25% and E85 also expanding substantially. Ethanol derived from waste achieves notably lower carbon intensity at approximately 58.34 gCO2e/MJ, substantially better than conventional gasoline (~92 gCO2e/MJ), providing clear environmental advantages. Economic assessments show robust investor returns and local economic growth driven by policy incentives, including Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) and IRA tax credits (45V). Infrastructure analysis confirms manageable costs and feasible adjustments for widespread adoption of higher ethanol blends.
title Accelerating Transportation Decarbonization: The Strategic Role of Ethanol Blends and Regulatory Incentives
topic General Finance
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.06278