Alternate Fuel
Alternative Fuels
As the cost of conventional gasoline inexorably rises up to $4 a gallon and more, scientists and the auto industry are focusing more of their efforts into finding and creating alternative and renewable fuels. Currently their efforts are centering on five different sources – ethanol, biodiesel, natural gas, propane and hydrogen – which are in various stages of development. They all face certain obstacles to become easily accessible and affordable, but as time and research goes on, it’s inevitable that at least one of these will become a legitimate and integral part of the nation’s (if not the entire world’s) transportation system.
Ethanol
Ethanol is an alcohol-based fuel created by fermenting and distilling corn and other starch crops. It can also be derived from trees and grasses. Gasohol (E10) is a blend of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline, which can be used in every car being manufactured today. In fact, you may be using it now, as it’s being sold with little fanfare at gas stations in many parts of the country.
Of more interest is E85, a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline, which can only be used in flexible fuel vehicles (FFVs). The cost varies depending on where you live; it’s more affordable in the Midwest (where the corn is) than other parts of the country. In terms of performance, E85 works just as well as traditional gasoline, producers lower emissions and it’s even more resistant to engine knock. However, because it has lower energy content, there’s a 20-30% drop in gas mileage.
Biodiesel/BioHeat
Biodiesel comes from vegetable oils and animal fats. It can be used on all diesel engines right now. It’s biodegradable, non-toxic and can generate less air pollutants than the current form of diesel. On the other hand, it’s more expensive than current diesel, generate less power and gas mileage, and is not suitable in colder weather. More development needs to be done to make this a better option.
Natural Gas
While natural gas is a fossil fuel like oil, there’s far more of it available, as almost 90% of the country’s natural gas is produced here. It’s one of the cleanest burning alternative fuels around, generating anywhere 60-90% fewer smog pollutants and up to 40% less greenhouse gases. It’s even less expensive than gasoline.
The drawbacks: It’s less readily available, and only dedicated or bi-fuel vehicles can run on it. Since natural gas is stored in high-pressure fuel tanks, cars need two separate fueling systems, which takes up space and lowers gas mileage.
Propane
Propane (LPG), is another domestically abundant fossil fuel; 85% of it is created in the States. It, too, produces fewer toxic and smog-forming air pollutants, not to mention less greenhouse gases. It’s even cheaper to make than gasoline.
The problems: LPG gets fewer miles per gallon and it’s not readily available. Even worse, there hasn’t been a new LPG-fueled passenger car or truck commercially produced since 2004. While you can retrofit your car to run on LPG, if it’s not very available it becomes very cumbersome for mainstream use.
Hydrogen
Hydrogen can be produced in America from several different sources--fossil fuels such as coal, nuclear power, or even as hydropower. Even better, fuel cell vehicles powered by pure hydrogen emit zero harmful air pollutants. Because of that, H2 is a high priority for many fuel production experts. Yet it must overcome some fairly stiff obstacles to become usable.
Outside of the facts that hydrogen-propelled cars are not readily available and the cost of them is currently exorbitant, hydrogen contains much less energy than gasoline or diesel on a per-volume basis. Unless its energy-per-volume is raised significantly, it’ll be difficult to fit enough storage space on a car to enable it to travel more than 200 miles.
