"UNL Is Part Of Ethanol Competition"
Lincoln (AP)
Published in the Omaha World-Herald on December 8, 1998 on page 16 of the Midlands section

For the second year in a row, University of Nebraska-Lincoln students are competing on a national stage to create the most fuel-efficient truck engine possible. The major requirement facing the team of 30 students from UNL's College of Engineering and Technology is to convert a full-size pickup truck so that it will run on 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. Gov. Ben Nelson announced Monday that the students will spend the next five months trying to design a better engine than student teams from 13 other schools across the country. The goals of the contest are to increase fuel efficiency and reduce emissions without sacrificing performance and consumer appeal. The trucks in the competition will be put through tests in May for emissions, acceleration, range, handling, energy efficiency and cold-start capability. A team of students from UNL competed last year, but did not win, said faculty advisor William Weins, an associate professor in the mechanical engineering department. "Although we did not win the competition, we had a lot of fun," Weins said. This year he said the team will have a competitive edge because of the support it is receiving, including the governor's. The national sponsors of the 1999 Vehicle Challenge are the U.S. Department of Energy, General Motors, the State of Nebraska and seven others, including the 22-member Governors' Ethanol Coalition. In related ethanol news, Nelson on Monday highlighted research under way at the High Plains Corp. ethanol plant in York. Nelson said researchers there are trying to find out whether methane gas, produced from ethanol wastewater, can be used as a source of power for a stationary fuel cell that could reduce the plant's use of electricity by 30 percent and natural gas by 25 percent. "Any time the production cost of ethanol can be lowered, that's good news for Nebraska's economy and industries, " Nelson said. High Plains Corp. is based in Witchita, Kan., and is among the nation's largest producers of ethanol. In addition to its York plant, it has facilities in Kansas and New Mexico. A longtime advocate of ethanol, Nelson earlier this year issued an executive order saying he wants state agencies to more frequently harness solar, wind, and water power instead of relying on fossil fuels.