Transitions To Alternative Vehicles And Fuels - Research Paper Example

Transitions To Alternative Vehicles And Fuels The use of internal combustion engines for vehicles, locomotives, and other equipment has been around for as long as the engine was first designed. However, these engines have for a long time been associated with a number of problems such as climate changes, health issues, and environmental degradation. These effects are both a direct and an indirect correlation to the reliance of this engine technology on oil. In the United States for instance, over 10 million oil barrels are consumed everyday by the transport industry with personal vehicles alone consuming slightly over 8 million barrels (Letcher 48). This paper will look specifically at the natural gas engine technology, its history and working, its pros and cons and finally give a summary. The reliance on oil is enormous, and the implications to climate, environment among other things being very significant. However, over the past few decades, there has been a growing need for new technologies to drive the vast transportation system and thus solve this problem. Millions of dollars of funds have been dedicated to research and development units of automotive companies in a bid to conceptualize and develop alternative power sources for transportation. The result has been the invention of battery technologies for electric vehicles and compressed natural gas engines for vehicles (Letcher 48). In the US, natural gas is used mainly as a source of fuel to heat offices and homes. However, the use of natural gas in car engines has been in existence since the early 1930s. Natural gas powered engine cars have thus been used on the highways of the US and other countries like Iran for decades. Their manufacture and popularity has also gained considerably over the years. According to a survey conducted by one of the leading industry groups involved in the research and production of natural gas engines for vehicles, NGV Global, the number of vehicles in the world which are powered by engines using natural gas are more than 15 million, with over 130,000 commercially produced cars used in the US alone (Letcher 103). This shows the level of interest and commitment that has gone into the shift from the internal combustion engine technology. In the US, for instance, this level of commitment toward this emerging technology has been prompted by the recent discoveries of significant natural gas reserves which many alternative fuel experts believe is an opportunity for the country to cut on its reliance on oil. So how exactly does the compressed natural gas engine technology work? Natural gas, in its natural state, is usually a mixture of other gases and other hydrocarbons. Methane gas is a major component of the hydrocarbons found in natural gas. The engine system for natural gas vehicles contains a large high pressure tank to store the gas, which is normally in compressed form. The high pressure tank is located in the trunk of the vehicle. Recent developments have adjusted the design of the tank and engine system in general, as there were concerns that the tank takes up more space than the conventional oil tanks. Otherlab company, for instance, have redesigned the tank using the concept of man’s digestive system. This design distributes the tank’s volume across the car thus efficiently distributing the gas to vital parts of the engine and car. The new design also saves up on space and allows new tanks to be fit into already existing engine designs (National Research Council 110). This recent development has been a milestone in the research and development of this emerging technology in the automotive industry. The use of the compressed natural gas engine technology has a number of advantages. Firstly, natural gas, particularly compressed natural gas, burns in a much cleaner manner than the normal petroleum oils. Therefore, the emissions resulting from its burning, mostly carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxide are significantly reduced. In a study conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency, the use of compressed natural gas reduces nitrogen oxide and carbon monoxide emissions by over 40 and 95 percent respectively. Secondly, the use of natural gas for the compressed natural gas engine technology is cost effective. It costs less to purchase natural gas compared to the normal gasoline. According to NGV, it costs about $2 less per gallon for every purchase of natural gas compared to gasoline (National Research Council 35). The savings on fuel are therefore near the range of 40 percent less than oil. Thirdly, natural gas is domestically produced in the US and is readily available following the recent discoveries of reserves. Its usage significantly cuts down reliance on oil and consequently the import bill. Finally, the engine technology is safer than the conventional diesel engines. Its robust design is meant to withstand such factors as prolonged exposure to environmental changes, increased temperatures, and impacts arising from accidents. In case of an accident, for example, the compressed natural gas would evaporate thus reducing the possibility of a fire (Letcher 77). The compressed natural gas engine technology for cars, despite the above mentioned advantages, also has disadvantages. The first major disadvantage is the lack of infrastructure to support this technology. There are very few stations for refueling purposes. In the US, for instance, there were only about 1,000 filling stations for natural gas compared to over 150,000 gasoline and diesel filling stations. This is as per data obtained by NGV in 2013 (National Research Council 13). The second disadvantage is that vehicles using this type of engine are more costly than those using the contemporary gasoline or diesel engine. This is despite the fact that it costs less to purchase a gallon of natural gas compared to gasoline. In conclusion, new technologies in the automotive industry as alternative power sources for transportation have emerged to address the impacts caused by reliance on the internal combustion engines which use oil. The compressed natural gas engine technology for cars, as discussed above, has more advantages than disadvantages and should thus be adopted as a replacement of the internal combustion engines. This will specifically help in the conservation of natural resources because it will reduce the overreliance on crude oil. Works Cited Letcher, Trevor. Future Energy: Improved, Sustainable and Clean Options for our Planet. Oxford: Elsevier, 2013. Print. National Research Council. Transitions to Alternative Vehicles and Fuels. New York: National Academies Press, 2013. Print. Read More