<P> Ethanol production was expected to continue to grow over the next several years, since the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 required 36 billion US gallons of renewable fuel use by 2022 . The target for ethanol production from cellulosic feedstocks was 16 billion US gallons a year . The corn ethanol target was 15 billion US gallons by 2015 . Ethanol industries provided jobs in agriculture, construction, operations and maintenance, mostly in rural communities . </P> <P> In early 2009 the industry experienced financial stress due to the effects of the economic crisis of 2008 . Motorists drove less, gasoline prices dropped sharply, capacity rose and less financing was available . </P> <P> Historically most U.S. ethanol has come from corn and the required electricity for many distilleries came mainly from coal . Debate ensued about ethanol's sustainability . The primary issues related to the large amount of arable land required for crops and ethanol production's impact on grain supply, indirect land use change (ILUC) effects, as well as issues regarding its energy balance and carbon intensity considering its full life cycle . Recent developments with cellulosic ethanol production and commercialization may allay some of these concerns . </P> <P> In 1826 Samuel Morey experimented with an internal combustion chemical mixture that used ethanol (combined with turpentine and ambient air then vaporized) as fuel . At the time, his discovery was overlooked, mostly due to the success of steam power . Ethanol fuel received little attention until 1860 when Nicholas Otto began experimenting with internal combustion engines . In 1859, oil was found in Pennsylvania, which decades later provided a new kind of fuel . A popular fuel in the U.S. before petroleum was a blend of alcohol and turpentine called "camphene", also known as "burning fluid ." The discovery of a ready supply of oil and unfavorable taxation on burning fluid made kerosene a more popular fuel . </P>

Which is a use of corn mandated by the u.s. congress