NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Alternative Vehicle Fuel Sources For last years there is a tendency to increasing the number of vehicles in the United States. According to National Household Travel Survey this number tripled from 1969 to 2001. The same tendency is noticed in other progressive countries. Almost all of them use hydrocarbon fuels.
But the sources of hydrocarbon fuels will come to end; and, most of all, carbon dioxide (CO 2) emissions causes global warming. Hydrocarbon fuels, such as coal and natural gas, are burned for the generation of electricity. The burning of hydrocarbon fuels causes the emission of greenhouse gases and other pollutants. The problems should be decided as soon as possible.
They provoked a search for an alternative fuel to hydrocarbon fossils. According to the report of Energy Information Administration, there were 1 million alternative fuel vehicles in the US in 2000. Alternative fuel includes different sources of energy, other than petroleum (oil). Among them there is ethanol, chemically stored electricity hydrogen, methane, natural gas, wood, and vegetable oil. But there are different problems with the implementation of new sources of energy. Thats why gasoline-powered vehicles are still in majority in the road; and almost 75 percent of the world's energy consumption consists of fossil fuels.
However, taking into account constant growth of harmful emission, alternate fuel sources are of great importance. One of the alternative fuels is natural gas. It was invented almost 100 years ago. Natural gas is important for a higher octane rating and a higher energy density. The other alternative source of energy is hydrogen.
It is considered to be the most promising of all the alternative fuels. There is no accessible natural reserve of uncombined hydrogen thats why it is produced through electrolysis or from natural gas. But it is still in the experimental stage; and a lot of companies are working on its development. Nowadays the most popular alternative-fuel vehicles are electric powered cars. They are powered by batteries that should be recharged nightly; thats why they depend on power from power-plants. But they are considered to be zero-emission cars.
The other alternative vehicle fuel source is fuel-cells. These are batteries but they use fuel sources (petrol, methanol, hydrogen, or natural gases) for power. Batteries convert the energy from a fuel source into electricity. Though there is emission but it is much less than regular cars. Thats why nowadays a lot of manufacturers are working on developing fuel-cell cars and a great number of them are available on the market. All alternative sources of energy have their advantages and disadvantages.
An electric vehicle, or EV, is a vehicle that has one or more electric motors. The motion is provided with the help of wheels or propellers driven by rotary motors or by linear motors. The energy may be taken from several sources: from chemical energy, battery-electric vehicle, hybrid vehicle generated on-board using a combustion engine, fuel cell vehicle and from wind and solar. Electric vehicles are a good choice because they can be finely controlled, they deliver power efficiently and they are mechanically very simple.
Most of all, electric motors can convert movement energy back into electricity. Electric vehicles are widely used for passenger vehicles, buses, heavy machinery, tractors, trucks, non-road and recreational applications. According to the data of the (US) Electric Auto Association, there are almost ten thousand full-sized electric cars on roads of America today. Large electric transport is directly connected to stationary sources of energy through the grid thats why they are ownership of publicly or by large companies such as maglev trains, metros, trams, trains and trolleybuses. Recently, the future of electric vehicles has seemed to be unclear because of low driving range and short lifespan of batteries. But several developments such as scooters, golf cars, neighborhood vehicles, in industrial operational yards and indoor operation have been made.
New models use hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) or battery electric vehicles. Hybrid electric vehicles are operated by both an electric motor and an internal combustion engine to propel the vehicle. They have been designed for capturing energy that is normally lost through braking. A lot of automotive manufacturers are going to produce more hybrid electric cars and trucks in the near future but prices of electric cars are rather high. In 2006, it was proposed to give a one-time tax deduction for hybrid purchasers with the purpose to make hybrid vehicles more financially affordable. Electric vehicles have several advantages.
They reduce fuel consumption and tailpipe emissions or tailpipe emissions are zero and recover or recycle energy from regenerative braking. They lower fuel and operational costs and can use existing gas station infrastructure. But electric vehicles have high initial cost, complexity of two powertrain's and need for public recharging infrastructure. As it was said, petroleum is considered to be the most important of hydrocarbons imported by industrialized countries. But the remaining supply of hydrocarbon resources in the world is limited. As a replacement hydrogen was proposed.
It is the most abundant element though it is not widely available on our planet. Hydrogen can be found in water or hydrocarbon fuels. Thats why there are several methods to produce hydrogen: through steam methane reformation, through electrolysis and biomass or coal gasification, and photo electrolysis. The first method generates CO 2 to a greater extent than conventional internal combustion engines.
Nowadays, the best way is considered to be high-temperature electrolysis but it has been demonstrated in a laboratory, but not at a commercial scale. Thats why though hydrogen source of energy is more efficient then others but it has a lot of disadvantages. A Hydrogen vehicle use hydrogen as its primary source of power. There are two methods of using hydrogen: combustion or fuel-cell conversion. In the first method, the hydrogen is "burned" in engines. In the second one, it is turned into electricity.
Having examined reports of energy experts and researchers, it is necessary to say that hydrogen vehicles are impractical as alternative. First of all, hydrogen gas has a poor energy density per volume. It needs tanks for its transportation 2 - 3 times as large as conventional gas tanks. The second, it is not clear if it is possible to put it into today's natural gas transmission systems. It seems to require the alteration of industry and transport that will cost hundreds of billions, or even trillions, of dollars. Thats why, though hydrogen may be the cheapest carrier of energy, but its pipelines are very expensive.
Most of all, as it was pointed, the natural gas steam reforming gas shift reaction method causes carbon dioxide (CO 2) emission. There will be other problems with hydrogen gas leakage; it is very dangerous fuel that has a wider explosive mix range with air of all the gases. Thats why hydrogen may never be the most economically feasible source of energy. A fuel cell vehicle (FCV) is a sort of electric vehicle but it uses a fuel cell instead of a battery. Hydrogen fuel cells have been used for a long time to generate electricity in spacecraft. A fuel cell vehicle can be regarded to hybrids because its electric battery is charged by a separate onboard system.
In fuel cells, electricity is produced through a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. The reaction does not produce harmful emissions. Most of all, a fuel cell must not be recharged thats why fuel cell vehicles are twice as efficient as similarly sized conventional vehicles. Taking into account all advantages, it is evident that Five are commonly used on the roads. Fuel cell cars are quiet, smooth, and easy to drive, and have the same range as conventional vehicles.
A natural-gas vehicle (NGV) is the other example of alternative vehicle. It is considered to be fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly. The source of energy (natural gas) for NGV is taken from underground reservoirs by drilling wells. First it was developed in the 19 th century; and since that time it has become a viable energy source for many applications.
Natural gas vehicles have a lot of advantages. First of all they reduce environmentally harmful emissions. They are safer because they have thicker and stronger fuel storage tanks. Natural gas costs are almost one-third lower than gasoline; and prices are more stable.
Natural gas is convenient and abundant and can be transported to almost every urban and suburban area through a well-established pipeline infrastructure. Maintenance costs are low because natural gas burns cleanly and results in less wear and tear on the engine. But there are several disadvantages. First of all, natural gas vehicles are not roomy. Cars need space to accommodate the fuel storage cylinders; and they are rather expensive to design and build.
Another disadvantage is the limited driving range of Ngv's. For example, a gasoline-powered car can go approximately 350 miles without refueling and a natural gas one only 220 miles. And most of all, natural gas reserves are not inexhaustible though they are rather large. Thats why though there are a lot of advantages offered by Ngv's, they are still relatively uncommon. Having examined the previous material, it is evident that some measures should be taken to reduce air pollution and to strong dependence on one source of energy. Alternative sources of energy should be developed for transport.
And nowadays the best way is to pay more attention to the development of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. First of all, because they are widely used nowadays so, have been tested before; and they will help to reduce carbon emissions. Bibliography: Alternative Fuel Cars. (2003). Collingwood School, Wallington. Retrieved from web Alternative Fuel. (2006). Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, retrieved June 13, 2006 from web Harris, Bill. (2006).
How Natural-gas Vehicles Work. Howstuffworks. Retrieved from web Motavalli, Jim (2001). Breaking Gridlock: Moving Towards Transportation That Works. San Francisco, Sierra Club Books, p. 145.
Free research essays on topics related to: electric vehicles, source of energy, taking into account, sources of energy, natural gas
Research essay sample on Alternative Vehicle Fuel Sources
