Alternative Fuels in Motor Vehicles

ALTERNATIVE FUELS : ALTERNATIVE FUELS IN MOTOR VEHICLES

Alternative Fuels: Alternative Fuels in Motor Vehicles

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Vernon Vincent Jackson

Writing 105, Highline Community College

Current Alternative Fuels [my subtitles suck! Help me Angie! Am I on the right track?]
Today in our market there are approximately 5 different alternative fuel options for the automotive industry. These fuels include Hydrogen, natural gas, ethanol, electricity, and biodiesel. According to the Dictionary of Ecology and Environmental Science, alternative fuels are “fuels other than gasoline or diesel for powering motor vehicles, often with improved energy efficiency and pollution reduction features”.(1995) Each one of these fuels is produced as an alternative to petroleum based gasoline. [Should I go into detail about each one? I think it’s necessary as it gives the reader an incite on what each one is basically.]
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Hydrogen fuel is being actively explored by many automotive manufacturers today. Hydrogen vehicles generally use electrolysis as a way to create energy. During the electrolysis process hydrogen and oxygen help to create electricity and water (Sperling & Cannon, 2004). Fuel cells convert the chemical energy of hydrogen into electricity (Sperling & Cannon, 2004). The electricity is then transferred to an electric motor which powers the car. The end result is pure water vapor from the hydrogen and oxygen cells during the conversion process. Electric vehicles are the same concept, but are only powered by an electric motor and batteries. Which require a charge before using.

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Biodiesel vehicles are different from Hydrogen and electric vehicles. Biodiesel vehicles use an internal combustion engine just as gasoline vehicles do, but because of the lower octane rating of diesel, the engine relies on pressure for combustion, rather than the spark of a gasoline vehicle. [my dad used to be a diesel mechanic,...