Alternative Fuels for Automobiles

Alternative Fuels for Automobiles

Alternative fuel , also known as non-conventional fuels , is any material or substance that can be used as a fuel , other than fossil fuels Alternative fuels , as defined by the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPAct include ethanol , natural gas , propane , hydrogen , biodiesel , electricity methanol , and p-series fuels .Using these alternative fuels in vehicles can generally reduce harmful pollutants and exhaust emissions Alternative fuels are designed to be cheap , non-polluting 'infinite sources of energy . No such fuels currently exist globally , or they would by now be rapidly replacing

current fossil fuels .In the year 2000 , there were about eight million vehicles around the world that ran on alternative fuels . A primary concern is that the fact that the use of conventional fuels directly contributes to the global warming crisis Another concern is the problem of peak oil , which predicts a rising cost of oil derived fuels caused by severe shortages of oil during an era of growing energy consumption . According to the 'peak oil ' phenomenon , the demand for oil will exceed supply and this gap will continue to grow which could cause a growing energy crisis by the year 2010 or 2020 . Most of the interest in alternative fuels has focused on transportation vehicles , since this application represents 70 of petroleum consumption

The President also proposes acceleration of the development of domestic renewable alternatives to gasoline and diesel fuels through 150 million for the Biofuels Initiative - a 59 million increase over FY 2006 - to help develop bio-based transportation fuels such as cellulosic ethanol ' from agricultural waste products , such as wood chips , stalks , or switch grass 31 million to speed the development of advanced battery technology to extend the range of hybrid vehicles and make possible plug-in ' hybrids and electric cars - a 27 percent increase over FY 2006 and 289 million for the President 's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative . President Bush outlined the Advanced Energy Initiative (AEI ) in pursuit of a national goal of replacing more than 75 percent of U .S . oil imports from the Middle East by 2025 . Since 2001 , nearly 10 billion has been invested by the Federal government to develop cleaner cheaper and more reliable alternative energy sources

1 . ETHANOL

Ethanol can run at a much higher compression ratio without octane-boosting additives . It burns more completely because ethanol molecules contain oxygen carbon monoxide emissions can be 80-90 lower than for fossil-fuelled engines (Hua Lu Karlsson . 2006 . However ethanol is degrading to some plastic or rubber parts of fuel delivery systems designed to use petrol , and has 37 less energy per litre than petrol . There has been a recent revival in interest in the use of ethanol-diesel fuel blends (E-diesel ) in heavy-duty vehicles as a means to reduce petroleum dependency , increase renewable fuels use , and reduce vehicle emissions . The major concern with the use of E-diesel derives from its flammability characteristics . E-diesel blends containing 10 to 15 ethanol have the vapor pressure and flammability limits of ethanol This means that ethanol concentrations in enclosed spaces such...