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What will power our vehicles in the
days ahead?
By
C.J. Baker
It
seems we can’t look at news or read a magazine without
being confronted with concerns about our dependence on foreign
oil, pollution, or the cost of energy. Today’s vehicles
are demonized as being inefficient, polluting, unsafe machines
fostered upon us by evil automobile corporations. It isn’t
our intent to take sides on these issues or to take a political
stance. After all, almost everyone would like to get better
fuel economy from their vehicles, have pollution free cars
and trucks, and to be totally free from the possibility of
injury while driving. What seems to be missing is perspective.
Compared
to the vehicles of just 30 years ago, today’s car and
trucks are incredibly improved in terms of fuel mileage,
pollution, and safety, but these gains did not come without
a price. The real cost of vehicles has gone up significantly.
There is also the problem of diminishing returns. As evolution
of the automobile proceeds, significant advances in fuel
economy, pollution reduction, and safety are increasingly
smaller and difficult to achieve. They are also increasingly
more expensive. Gains cannot be legislated into existence.
Gains come from research and development, and that takes
time and money.
Sometimes
gains can be achieved by technological breakthroughs, such
as computer control of fuel systems and engine management,
but historically, automotive evolution occurs slowly. Fuel
cells have been touted as the automotive power source of
the future, but the technology hasn’t yet been fully
developed, nor have there been published reports on the real
energy efficiency of using hydrogen to power vehicles. For
example, what will be the cost of generating pure hydrogen
in terms of energy and pollution from hydrogen generation
plants? What will it cost to transport and distribute pure
hydrogen, and what will be the hazards associated with hydrogen
as a fuel? The Los Angeles Times has reported that creation
of a hydrogen fuel infrastructure to support fuel cell vehicles
will cost $500 billion and take 10-15 years to build. Additionally,
there’s the matter of time that it will take to develop
an affordable and practical hydrogen-fueled car. That’s
estimated at 15 to 20 years. Then there’s the time it
will take for such cars to gradually replace America’s
population of internal combustion engine vehicles. Add another
10 to 15 years.
If
we are to make meaningful progress in the near future, other
avenues must be explored. Electric cars have been tried,
and while the technology is suitable for small commuter cars
that don’t have to travel long distances, the cost of
such vehicles, the battery weight, and battery life really
doesn’t make electric vehicles a practical alternative.
Moreover, where does the electricity to power such vehicles
come from? How much foreign oil or coal is used to generate
that electricity, and with how much pollution?
Hybrid
vehicles have also arrived on the scene. Such cars use a
combination of an internal combustion engine, generator,
battery, and an electric motor for power. Such vehicles do
deliver good fuel economy, largely because they are quite
small. Similar sized and weight internal combustion engine
vehicles do almost as well. The acceptance of hybrid vehicles
to date has been largely due to various governmental incentives.
So,
what is the fuel of the future? For most people, gasoline
will continue to be the predominant fuel for most American
cars and light trucks. Surcharges and penalties may be imposed
on car companies, and even car owners, whose vehicles don’t
achieve legislated levels of fuel economy, and this will
lead many car and truck makers to offer another alternative
that can significantly improve fuel economy and reduce pollution.
That alternative is diesel.
Before
you dismiss the idea of diesel-powered cars (we already have
diesel light trucks), consider several things. First, we’re
not talking about smoke belching, noisy, smelly diesels here.
We’re talking about the new generation of clean, powerful,
efficient diesels (see ”Diesel
Evolution” elsewhere on this site). Second, diesels
can get 40 to 60 percent better fuel economy than similar
gasoline engines. This would reduce our dependence on foreign
oil. Third, modern diesels will emit less pollution than
gasoline engines. Fourth, one out of every three cars in
western Europe is diesel powered. Fifth, the technology not
only exists, it is already in production by American and
foreign car companies. American diesel-powered cars are manufactured
for sale in Europe. Sixth, ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel has
already been mandated in this country by the EPA by 2006.
Seventh, diesel engines are more practical in hybrid vehicles
than are gasoline engines. Eighth, diesel engines can be
built in any size and power to match the transportation needs
of various sized vehicles. Buyers wouldn’t be limited
to small cars or short travel distances. Ninth, the refining,
transportation, storage and distribution infrastructure already
exists for diesel. Adding diesel pumps to gas stations would
cost far less than a hydrogen distribution system. Tenth,
we can manufacture diesel fuel from natural gas and renewable
resources to cut our dependence on foreign oil even further
(see "Synthetic
Diesel" and "The
Biodiesel Alternative" elsewhere on this site). Understand
we’re not talking about replacing every gasoline-powered
car and truck with a diesel. If only 20 percent of our cars
and light trucks are diesel powered, the average fuel economy
and total pollution of the American vehicle population will
be significantly improved.
In
the long run, hydrogen may power the vehicles of the world,
and sunlight may be used to power the hydrogen generation
plants. In the meantime, bridging the technological gap,
will be an ever-increasing number of diesel-fueled vehicles.
You owe it to yourself to learn more about this fuel of the
future. Your perception of diesel will change, and the odds
are you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
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