ALT-5 What is Alternative Fuel
The Energy Policy Act of 1993 led to the definition of alternative fuels as, "alternative fuels are substantially nonpetroleum and yield energy, security and environmental benefits." The Department of Energy currently recognizes the following as alternative fuels:
Mixtures containing 85% or more by volume of alcohol fuel, including methanol and denatured ethanolNatural gas (compressed or liquefied)Liquefied petroleum gas (propane)HydrogenCoal-derived liquid fuelsElectricity (including electricity from solar energy)100% Biodiesel (B100)P-series fuels
Ethanol is an alcohol based fuel created by the fermentation of starch crops into simple sugars. Sources of the starch crops include wheat, corn, barley and biomass plants. Currently ethanol is used in gasoline to reduce the amount of emissions in the combustion process. Flexible fuel vehicles can run on a blend of eighty-five percent ethanol and fifteen percent gasoline.
Natural gas is a fossil fuel that is a mixture of mostly methane, but includes ethane, propane, nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and water vapor. It comes from either gas wells or as a by product of crude oil production. It is currently used in the home, commercially and industrially. Some vehicles are being run on compressed natural gas (CNG) as it is a clean burning fuel.
Liquefied petroleum gas or propane is also a by product but this is of natural gas processing and crude oil refining. During the natural gas processing procedure, the heavier end fuels are separated by a cooling and high pressure process. Propane and ethane will remove themselves from the methane and other light end products. Propane burns very cleanly and has less of the hazardous air particles creating during gasoline combustion. Propane is relatively less costly than gasoline to operate and is produced from national resources.
Hydrogen is the most uncomplicated element in our current world. It has one proton and one electron and the gas is made up of two of these atoms. Hydrogen carries energy, it does not provide it. A hydrogen fuel cell works much as a battery, however it will not lose power. As long as the chemicals flow into the cell, the electricity flows out of the cell. When hydrogen is supplied, a chemical reaction, between hydrogen and air produces electricity, pure water and some heat. There is no pollution by-product produced, making this a very clean form of power.
Coal derived liquid fuels in any phase do not happen naturally; they are created. These are referred to as synfuels'. These can be produced from coal, oil shale, or tar sands. Gaseous fuels can be produced from sources other than petroleum and natural gas.
Electricity can be used in vehicles via battery electric and fuel cell vehicles. Batteries are subject to depletion and must be recharged; hence, they must derive their power from yet an additional medium. This however can be achiever with wind power.
Biodiesel is a clean burning alternative fuel that comes from completely renewable resources. There is no petroleum in biodiesel but it can be blended with petroleum to be used in a variety of vehicles. It is non-toxic and will degrade naturally. Pure biodiesel can only be used in diesel engines, not gasoline engines. This is derived from waste or pure oil in which a transesterfication changes oil along with the removal of glycerin the oil into biodiesel.
P-series fuel is a blend of natural gas liquids, ethanol and methyltetrahydrofuran a biomass created solvent. This fuel has an octane rating between 89-93 much like gasoline. This is made to be used in flexible fuel vehicles. This can be used in conjunction with gasoline in any percentage, but are not being readily created.
