n-Butanol can be produced from plant biomass (sugar) by fermentation
(‘‘biobutanol’’) or from fossil fuels (‘‘petrobutanol’’);
biobutanol and petrobutanol have the same chemical properties.
Butanol is primarily used industrially as a solvent or component
in surface coatings, and with characteristics similar to petroleum
fuel, it is a superior biofuel to ethanol. Biobutanol is more energy
dense and less hygroscopic than bioethanol, resulting in higher
possible blending ratios with gasoline. It is also less corrosive
and more suitable for distribution through existing pipelines for
gasoline than ethanol, and the Reid vapor pressure of butanol is
7.5 times lower than that of ethanol, making it less evaporative/
explosive [1].