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Alternative Fuels for Vehicle Use
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| Frequently Asked Questions |
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Jun 10, 2004 22:52:18 |
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 135 ( -19 -14.07% ) | | Author | Tom Torbjornsen |
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Alternative Fuels
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What is an alternative fuel?
"Alternative fuels" are vehicle fuels that are not made from petroleum, of which there are many different kinds. The United States Department of Energy officially recognizes the following fuels as alternative fuels. However, this is not a complete list and for the sake of space, we'll only look at the most popular ones and discuss the roles they may play in the automotive arena.
Alcohols - ethanol and methanol
Compressed natural gas (CNG) - natural gas under high pressure
Electricity - stored in batteries
Fuel Cells - electric power from hydrogen
Biodiesel - a lot like diesel fuel, but made from plant oil or animal fat
By increasing alternative fuel use, consumers will have fuel choices that compete with gasoline and diesel, broaden our supply base, and have lower environmental impact.
And now for a look at a few of the most popular alternative fuel sources in detail.
Alcohols - Ethanol and Methanol
Alcohols have been popular alternative fuels for many years. In fact, Henry Ford's first car was fueled with alcohol. Both ethanol and methanol are now used as transportation fuels.
Ethanol (sometimes-called grain alcohol) is generally made in the US from corn, but can also be made from organic materials. These materials include agricultural crops and waste, plant material left from logging, and trash, including cellulose. Brazil, which is by far the largest producer in the world, makes ethanol from sugar cane. The alcohol found in alcoholic beverages is ethanol. However, the ethanol used for motor fuel is denatured, which means it has been made unfit for drinking. Ethanol is also used to act as an oxygenate to reduce tailpipe emissions, typically, a mix of 10%-15% ethanol to 90%-85% gasoline is used.
Methanol (sometimes called wood alcohol) can be made from various organic resources such as wood and coal. However, today nearly all methanol is made from natural gas because it is cheaper. Methanol is also very poisonous and thus harmful if swallowed. Methanol must not be confused with ethanol. As with gasoline, it is also wise to avoid skin contact with methanol, as it can pass through the skin. Methanol is made of a single chemical. Gasoline, on the other hand, contains many different chemicals, and can vary greatly from one batch to another. Methanol has a higher octane rating than gasoline, giving more power. In addition, methanol is safer in case of accidental fire than gasoline, because it burns cooler. However, methanol contains only about half the energy of gasoline per gallon, translating into fewer miles per gallon of fuel. This decrease in range with methanol is one significant downfall of methanol use as a fuel.
CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) - You can cook with it and heat your house with it. You may even power a car or truck with it. So what is it? Natural gas. Like oil (petroleum), this common fuel comes from underground. However, natural gas, as the name implies, is a gas much like air, rather than a liquid like petroleum. It has been found to be one of the most environmentally friendly fuels. Ninety-five (95) percent of natural gas is methane. The other 5 percent is made up of various gases along with small amounts of water vapor. These other gases include butane, propane, ethane and other trace gases. Because it burns clean and because it is not made from petroleum (as gasoline and diesel are), many carmakers around the world are developing vehicles that run on natural gas. Cars, vans, buses and small trucks generally use natural gas that has been compressed (called compressed natural gas or CNG) and stored in high-pressure cylinders. Several vehicles are offered today which operate on compressed natural gas. It is not uncommon to see fleets and public transportation use CNG powered vehicles. A good example of the use of CNG for public transportation is that of Pierce Transit. Pierce Transit is considered by many to be the number one transit agency in the country with regards to using alternative fueled vehicles. Pierce Transit is a public transportation agency serving Pierce County, WA with local and express bus routes, vanpools, ridesharing programs, and specialized transportation for individuals with disabilities. Pierce Transit began using compressed natural gas (CNG) in 1986 when they launched a four-year demonstration project to test the feasibility of it as a fleet fuel source. According to a Pierce Transit representative, they chose CNG because it is "clean-burning, safe and plentiful." Working with the Washington State Energy Office and Washington Natural Gas (now Puget Sound Energy), they converted two 1974 GMC buses to run on both diesel and CNG. When results were compared with six diesel buses of the same age, Pierce Transit found that it cost less per mile in most cases to operate CNG buses. The engines also ran quieter, helping to curb noise pollution in neighborhoods. Other users of CNG successfully include:
United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Region 10.
Puget Sound Clean Air Agency
City of Seattle, WA
United States Bakery (Franz)
Triple A of Washington
And these are only a few. There are thousands of agencies using CNG powered vehicles!
Electricity (Battery Power) - Electric vehicles (EV's) don't burn gasoline in an engine. Instead, they use electricity stored on the car in batteries. Sometimes 12 or 24 batteries (or more) are needed to power the car. Just like a remote-controlled model electric car, EV's have an electric motor that turns the wheels and a battery to run the motor. Typically, EV designs are aerodynamic, meaning that air slides around the body of the car very easily. The less air resistance or drag, the less energy is needed to power the car at freeway speeds. To charge an EV's batteries, the car is usually plugged in when the vehicle is not running. The biggest challenge to making battery power a viable form of automotive power is to develop a battery that will hold more energy and last longer, so it can provide long range service (be able to go 150 to 200 miles before recharging). For this reason, battery power is not seen as a practical option. However, on a commuter basis, where there's an electrical charging infrastructure, electric power is a great alternative. Key West, FL is a perfect example where the town is "wired for cars," with charging stations throughout the city. Electric vehicles, that look like giant golf carts, wheel people throughout the town. When folks park, they hook up their EV to the charging stations, much like the cowboys-of-old hooked their horses to the fence post when they came into town.
Fuel Cells - Another type of Zero-Emission Vehicle is the fuel cell powered vehicle. When the fuel cells on these vehicles are fueled with pure hydrogen, they are considered zero emission vehicles. Fuel cell vehicles convert energy in the form of hydrogen fuel to electrical energy, which is then used to power an electric motor. During the process, hydrogen combines with oxygen to produce water (H20) as a by-product. In fuel cells this is accomplished without any burning (combustion). Very little is in the exhaust emission except water. However, fuel cells do get hot; thus the water comes out of the fuel cells as water vapor, or steam. Many people in the vehicle manufacturing business think that fuel cell vehicles may be the technology of the future. However, a lot of work will have to be done to make fuel cell vehicles perform well enough to replace the type of vehicles we use today. In addition, they must find a cheaper way to produce them to make them more affordable to the masses.
At present, the development of the fuel cell vehicle is in the 'pre-prototype stage.' This means that there are very few fuel cell vehicles in existence, and all of them are actually used for testing. Most car manufacturers have (or are working on) demonstration models, some of which can reach a speed of 90 mph and can travel up to about 280 miles before they need refueling. DaimlerChrysler has developed the NECAR 4; Ford calls its demonstration model the P2000 Sedan. Without mass production, it is not likely that fuel cell vehicles will be competitive in the vehicle market place. Recently, I attended an SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) conference in Rochester, NY on fuel cell powered vehicles. The general consensus by GM, Ford, and Toyota: the major hurdle facing carmakers with respect to bringing fuel cell powered cars to the general public is the excessive cost of generating power from the fuel cell. Analysts project that fuel cell cars should be available for the public by 2015 - 2020.
And my favorite because of its uniqueness…
Biodiesel is a lot like diesel fuel, but made from vegetable oil or animal fat.
Biodiesel is not regular vegetable oil or animal fat, and therefore it is not safe to swallow. It is biodegradable, however, so it is much less harmful to the environment if spilled. Biodiesel is made through a process called transesterification. This process makes vegetable oil and animal fat into esterified oil, which can be used as diesel fuel or can be mixed with regular diesel fuel. Ordinary diesel engines can run on biodiesel. Practically any type of vegetable oil or animal fat can be used to make biodiesel, but the most popular types of vegetable oils are soybean and rapeseed oil. These oils have been tried as biodiesel because they are less expensive than most other types of vegetable oil (although soybean and rapeseed oil are still more expensive than regular diesel fuel). Animal fat is too expensive for this use, but used oil from restaurants has been tried for biodiesel. Biodiesel has been shown to produce lower tailpipe emissions than regular diesel fuel. The best thing about biodiesel is that it is made from plants and animals, which are renewable resources. In a press release dated 1/20/04 in Autoweek:
VW developing biodiesel
Volkswagen is joining with U.S. agricultural processing giant Archer Daniels Midland to develop and use biodiesel automotive fuels-the first such project to partner a major automobile manufacturer and a global agricultural concern. A biodiesel blend is a fuel mixture made by combining diesel petroleum with natural or renewable resources such as rapeseed or soybean oil. It can be used to power conventional diesel engines and substantially reduces emissions of carbon monoxide and particulate matter."
We will be hearing more and more about alternative fuels as time goes on. It will be interesting to see what will become of each of the alternative fuels outlined above.
'Til next time…Keep Rollin'
---Story by Tom Torbjornsen
---Photos courtesy of GM, Honda, and Toyota |
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