Alternative Fuels to Petrol / Gasoline

The fossil fuels – coal, oil and natural gas – are non-renewable. Experts believe that these fuels may be used up in the next 40-70 years. Due to this fact and the rising cost of these fuels, alternative sources of energy have been explored. Alternative fuels can be made from a variety of materials and are generally used in a vehicle or burned to heat a building. Although gasoline and diesel gasoline are currently the most common fuels for vehicles, the first cars with internal combustion engines were not all powered by gasoline; some of them used renewable fuels. Some early examples include Francois Issac de Rivaz’s internal combustion engine that ran on hydrogen (1807), Samuel Morey’s internal combustion engine that ran on turpentine (1826), and Henry Ford’s model T that could run on either gasoline or ethanol. Some common alternative fuels for automobiles that are used today are propane, ethanol, biodiesel, hydrogen and compressed air.

Propane

Propane is desirable over gasoline for use in vehicles because it is a very clean burning fuel. However, although propane is considered an alternative fuel, it is not considered a renewable resource as propane is produced through processing natural gas and oil.

Ethanol

Ethanol is alcohol that is made by fermenting food such as corn or sugar cane. Recently in Canada, ethanol has been added to all gasoline as an effort to reduce pollution and dependence on crude oil. In Canada, the ethanol in gasoline is made primarily from corn. This use of corn has driven up its price, which is good for the corn producers but hard on farmers who raise livestock.

If interested, it’s possible to make your own E85 fuel from home to use in cars.

Biodiesel

Biodiesel is a word used to describe other oils, such as vegetable oil, that can be used to run diesel engines. Older diesel engines may be able to use these alternative fuels without alteration but, in newer-model diesel cars, use of biodiesel requires a modification kit and voids the warranty. There are plenty of places to learn the benefits of biodiesels and also algae oil.

Hydrogen

Hydrogen and hydrogen fuel cells are sometimes used to power vehicles. Hydrogen is produced by passing electricity through water. Cars running on hydrogen need to have much larger tanks for storage. Vehicles using a hydrogen fuel cell are expensive to produce and can be easily damaged. Regardless car makers like BMW are making hydrogen powered cars. The brilliant thing about hydrogen fuel is that the emisions that come out of the car are just water.

Compressed Air

Compressed air is a relatively new form of alternative fuel for vehicles. Cars using compressed air produce zero emissions! The most widely used air car has been developed in India. It has not been purchased widely throughout the world, due in part to safety considerations including the fact that the car is not welded but held together using glue.