Engine and Vehicle Manufacturers

Maverick Value Chain: Feedstock Producers & Processors > Fuel Technology Companies > Fuel Distributors > Engine & Vehicle Manufacturers > Fuel Users

Maverick is developing a patent-pending second generation technology for producing a mixed-alcohol biofuel from waste biomass. Maverick's mixed-alcohol biofuel (MBF) will be used in automobiles and other transportation vehicles, either as an alternative to ethanol in the E10 blend (10% ethanol/90% gasoline) used in conventional gasoline engines, or as an alternative to the E85 blend (85% ethanol/15% gasoline) used in flexible fuel vehicles. MBF will contain more energy than ethanol, and can be produced at a lower cost than current food–to-fuel processes.

The use of Maverick’s mixed alcohol biofuel offers many advantages for engine and vehicle manufacturers over first generation biofuels.

More Power
Ethanol can be used at concentrations of around 10% by volume in a conventional gasoline engine and at concentrations of around 85% by volume in a flexible fuel engine. However, at high concentrations, ethanol’s lower energy content begins to become significant. E85 has around 25% less energy than gasoline. In contrast, MBF contains approximately 85% of the energy content of gasoline. When blended with 15% gasoline, the energy content will be approximately 87% that of gasoline.

Flex-Fuel Vehicle Friendly
Flexible-fuel vehicles can run any mixture of gasoline and MBF without redesign. The FFV sensors used today can detect the presence of MBF and automatically adjust the fuel injection and spark timing accordingly. Vehicle design and manufacturing considerations are similar to that of E85 ethanol blend standards.

New Sources of Alternative Fuels
The U.S. has not produced sufficient ethanol to make E85 available to the average consumer. MBF can be produced at scale using proven process steps and shipped more easily than ethanol. Thus, MBF can assist auto manufacturers by providing a viable domestic source of fuel for these vehicles.

Improved Mileage
MBF has more energy (BTUs) than ethanol and contains approximately 85% of the energy of gasoline. Higher energy content translates to higher gas mileage when compared to ethanol or ethanol blends. Higher gas mileage in flexible-fuel vehicles helps manufacturers meet Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) regulations by improving vehicle fuel efficiency across the production fleet.