There’s a good possibility that the ethanol mandate will end next year in Missouri. We are an agricultural state. Several Republicans in the Missouri House favor doing away with corn and soybean fuel, just as MFA is building a big biodiesel plant that banks on continued use of blended fuels.
Before ethanol, MTBE (Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether) was added to gasolint to increase octane (since tetraethyl lead had been banned.) When underground gas tanks leaked, MTBE got into groundwater, giving it a bad taste & odor. A number of states decided to ban MTBE and require 10% ethanol instead. If Missouri drops ethanol in gasoline, what will replace it?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_tert-butyl_ether