While the use of ethanol as an automobile fuel additive improves air quality by reducing hydrocarbon and carbon monoxide emissions, it also increases the release of certain other pollutants, according to research by scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory .
Aldehydes are much more reactive in the atmosphere than the alcohols they are made from.
When it's cold, its lifetime is longer. PAN is highly toxic to plants and is a powerful eye irritant. It has been measured in many areas of the world, indicating that it can be carried by winds throughout the globe. More than 99 per cent of the vehicles in the area use blended fuels containing 10 percent alcohol in the winter, while blended fuel use declines substantially during the summer. This pattern made Albuquerque an ideal site for studying the urban and downwind effects of alternative fuel use, Gaffney said.