An Environmentally Friendly Blog|Information on Going Green and Eco-Friendly Products
Jun
09
Filed Under (Environment) by Go Green Advisor
Abhishek Agarwal asked:
Alternative fuels, or at least the concept of them, have been around since the early days of the automobile. The gasoline internal combustion engine changed the face of the planet, but since day 1 people have looked for other fuels to power this engine with.
It wasn’t until the American gas shortages of the 1970’s that research into alternative fuels really began in earnest. Faced with shortages of gasoline, there was no choice but to develop some alternatives to the standard gasoline engine. What they discovered was ethanol.
Ethanol
Alcohol made from corn has been around since mankind first learned to cultivate it, but it wasn’t until the 70’s that scientists realized it could be used in gasoline powered vehicles. Ethanol (denatured with enough methanol that people couldn’t drink it) could power an internal combustion engine as effectively as petrochemicals, but without a lot of the harmful byproducts of petrochemical combustion. It was cheaper to make than gasoline, and would require large amounts of corn, which was good for the farmers at the time.
There were other fuels that were discovered to work as well, with modifications to the engine to accomodate the new fuels. Natural gas, propane, and hydrogen will all power an internal combustion engine just as well as gasoline or ethanol. But there were (and still are) problems with fuel storage and delivery, and the engine must be modified to use these fuels - they won’t work in a standard gasoline engine design.
Why Aren’t We Using Alternative Fuels Then?
There is probably no simple answer as to why we aren’t already using these alternative fuels now - 30 years after research first began. Some cite the political clout of the big oil companies, others cite the expense of changing the infrastructure to a new fuel type (which is made all the more difficult by the millions of gasoline vehicles already on the roads), still others say that the technologies simply are not ready yet. The true answer probably lies with a blending of all these reasons and many more - societal inertia comes to mind. People are simply comfortable with there gas guzzlers, and until a good portion of the population wants this change, it won’t happen. But fortunately, this is occurring today. With gas prices spiraling up out of control at the pump, more and more cities cloaked in a thickening layer of smog, and global envornmental awareness hitting it’s peak, popular demand for alternative fuels that are cheaper and greener is at an all-time high.
Caffeinated Content - Members-Only Content for WordPress
Alternative fuels, or at least the concept of them, have been around since the early days of the automobile. The gasoline internal combustion engine changed the face of the planet, but since day 1 people have looked for other fuels to power this engine with.
It wasn’t until the American gas shortages of the 1970’s that research into alternative fuels really began in earnest. Faced with shortages of gasoline, there was no choice but to develop some alternatives to the standard gasoline engine. What they discovered was ethanol.
Ethanol
Alcohol made from corn has been around since mankind first learned to cultivate it, but it wasn’t until the 70’s that scientists realized it could be used in gasoline powered vehicles. Ethanol (denatured with enough methanol that people couldn’t drink it) could power an internal combustion engine as effectively as petrochemicals, but without a lot of the harmful byproducts of petrochemical combustion. It was cheaper to make than gasoline, and would require large amounts of corn, which was good for the farmers at the time.
There were other fuels that were discovered to work as well, with modifications to the engine to accomodate the new fuels. Natural gas, propane, and hydrogen will all power an internal combustion engine just as well as gasoline or ethanol. But there were (and still are) problems with fuel storage and delivery, and the engine must be modified to use these fuels - they won’t work in a standard gasoline engine design.
Why Aren’t We Using Alternative Fuels Then?
There is probably no simple answer as to why we aren’t already using these alternative fuels now - 30 years after research first began. Some cite the political clout of the big oil companies, others cite the expense of changing the infrastructure to a new fuel type (which is made all the more difficult by the millions of gasoline vehicles already on the roads), still others say that the technologies simply are not ready yet. The true answer probably lies with a blending of all these reasons and many more - societal inertia comes to mind. People are simply comfortable with there gas guzzlers, and until a good portion of the population wants this change, it won’t happen. But fortunately, this is occurring today. With gas prices spiraling up out of control at the pump, more and more cities cloaked in a thickening layer of smog, and global envornmental awareness hitting it’s peak, popular demand for alternative fuels that are cheaper and greener is at an all-time high.
Caffeinated Content - Members-Only Content for WordPress
