Quote Originally Posted by raytoews View Post
I can believe ethanol will increase the octane (resistance to explode).
Light a can of gas and WHOOSH.
Light a can of ethanol and you get a pretty light blue to clear flame.
Ethanol has higher octane, yes, but it's not "resistance to explode". Octane rating is a resistance to "detonation" (pinging). The reason ethanol doesn't go "WHOOSH" like gasoline is not because of its higher octane rating, but its lower vapor pressure (2.3 vs. 8-15 for gasoline) and higher flash point (55F vs gasoline's -45F). Though I suspect the flash point may be related to the octane rating (I'm not a chemist). Flash point and vapor pressure are certainly related.