Alternative fuel sources for cars
Gasoline and diesel are the most popular, and let's face it, the best fuel sources for our cars. The problem is that's it's getting so expensive to keep pumping these fuels in to our vehicles on a weekly basis!
The price of fuel is one of those things that will always be going up in price. It may come down a little now and again but the over all trend will always be up! So we need to start looking for alternative fuel sources for our cars!
There are a few different types of alternative fuel sources out there ranging from Ethanol to water we can put in our cars but the drawbacks with the majority of them mean that only "friends of the earth" type people are likely to consistently use alternative fuels.
In an idea world there would be a fuel that would be cheap, harmless to the environment and there would be an inexhaustible supply of it.
Back in the real world though we just have to make the best of what we've got!
The price of fuel is one of those things that will always be going up in price. It may come down a little now and again but the over all trend will always be up! So we need to start looking for alternative fuel sources for our cars!
There are a few different types of alternative fuel sources out there ranging from Ethanol to water we can put in our cars but the drawbacks with the majority of them mean that only "friends of the earth" type people are likely to consistently use alternative fuels.
In an idea world there would be a fuel that would be cheap, harmless to the environment and there would be an inexhaustible supply of it.
Back in the real world though we just have to make the best of what we've got!
Types of alternative fuel for cars
There are alternatives sources out there. And here they are!
Here's a few of the most popular alternative fuel sources for cars available.
Just about everyone and their dog has heard of alcohol fuel. Well ethanol is pure alcohol.
There's a few variations on the type of Ethanol you can put in your car, namely E10 (gasohol) and E85 but they're all pretty much the same when you get down to business!
Advantages to using Ethanol in your car:
* Good for the environment.
Disadvantages to using Ethanol in your car:
* It costs pretty much the same as regular gas.
* It gets fewer miles per gallon.
* E85 Ethanol can only be used in flex-fuel cars.
Natural gas comes from fossil fuels is made mostly of Methane. The fact that it's a bi-product of a fossil fuel limits it's appeal to me!
Advantages to using natural gas in your car
* Good for the environment.
* Cheaper than ordinary gas (if you have the right car that is)
Disadvantages to using Natural Gas in your car:
* Only runs in cars designed to use it.
* Not very readily available.
* You get fewer miles out of a full tank.
Liquefied Petroleum Gas, better known as propane or autogas is basically a mixture of gasses that are mixed together and can be used as a fuel. The gasses are manufactured during the refining of crude oil.
Advantages of using LPG in your car:
* Good for the environment.
* Cheaper than regular gas.
Disadvantages to using LPG in your car:
* Your vehicle will have to be retrofitted to work on LPG.
* Not readily available.
* Fewer miles per tank.
Hydrogen is being seriously explored as the fuel of the future for passenger vehicles. There's more than a couple of hurdles to get over first though before it becomes common place.
Advantages to using Hydrogen in your car:
* Good for the environment.
Disadvantages to using Hydrogen in your car
* Expensive.
* Not readily available.
* Needs a special fuel cell for your car which is very expensive to buy and fit.
* Can do less than 200 miles on a full tank.
Biodiesel can be made from a number of natural oils including soya beans, Sunflower, Hemp, animal fats and waste vegetable oil(WVO).
Advantages to using Biodiesel:
* Good for the environment.
* With a bit of know how and effort can be home made in your garage.
Disadvantages to using Biodiesel:
* Costs much the same as regular diesel.
* Not readily available.
* Can clog up filters and corrode rubber gaskets etc in the car engine.
I kid you not! Plain old ordinary tap water can be used as an alternative fuel source for cars!
Advantages to using water in your car:
* It's free and readily available.
* Better for the environment.
* The cost of a conversion in minimal and can be done at home in your garage.
Disadvantages to using water in your car
* You'll still need to buy regular gas.
* Requires a conversion.
To learn more about using water as a fuel Click Here!
~~~ETHANOL~~~
Just about everyone and their dog has heard of alcohol fuel. Well ethanol is pure alcohol.
There's a few variations on the type of Ethanol you can put in your car, namely E10 (gasohol) and E85 but they're all pretty much the same when you get down to business!
Advantages to using Ethanol in your car:
* Good for the environment.
Disadvantages to using Ethanol in your car:
* It costs pretty much the same as regular gas.
* It gets fewer miles per gallon.
* E85 Ethanol can only be used in flex-fuel cars.
~~~NATURAL GAS~~~
Natural gas comes from fossil fuels is made mostly of Methane. The fact that it's a bi-product of a fossil fuel limits it's appeal to me!
Advantages to using natural gas in your car
* Good for the environment.
* Cheaper than ordinary gas (if you have the right car that is)
Disadvantages to using Natural Gas in your car:
* Only runs in cars designed to use it.
* Not very readily available.
* You get fewer miles out of a full tank.
~~~LPG - LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS~~~
Liquefied Petroleum Gas, better known as propane or autogas is basically a mixture of gasses that are mixed together and can be used as a fuel. The gasses are manufactured during the refining of crude oil.
Advantages of using LPG in your car:
* Good for the environment.
* Cheaper than regular gas.
Disadvantages to using LPG in your car:
* Your vehicle will have to be retrofitted to work on LPG.
* Not readily available.
* Fewer miles per tank.
~~~HYDROGEN~~~
Hydrogen is being seriously explored as the fuel of the future for passenger vehicles. There's more than a couple of hurdles to get over first though before it becomes common place.
Advantages to using Hydrogen in your car:
* Good for the environment.
Disadvantages to using Hydrogen in your car
* Expensive.
* Not readily available.
* Needs a special fuel cell for your car which is very expensive to buy and fit.
* Can do less than 200 miles on a full tank.
~~~BIODIESEL~~~
Biodiesel can be made from a number of natural oils including soya beans, Sunflower, Hemp, animal fats and waste vegetable oil(WVO).
Advantages to using Biodiesel:
* Good for the environment.
* With a bit of know how and effort can be home made in your garage.
Disadvantages to using Biodiesel:
* Costs much the same as regular diesel.
* Not readily available.
* Can clog up filters and corrode rubber gaskets etc in the car engine.
~~~WATER~~~
I kid you not! Plain old ordinary tap water can be used as an alternative fuel source for cars!
Advantages to using water in your car:
* It's free and readily available.
* Better for the environment.
* The cost of a conversion in minimal and can be done at home in your garage.
Disadvantages to using water in your car
* You'll still need to buy regular gas.
* Requires a conversion.
To learn more about using water as a fuel Click Here!
The environment
Burning fuel in our cars burns a hole in the enviroment,
Not only does filling up at the pumps cost a small fortune now a days but every time we do it we're contributing to the cause of global warming and the funny weather patterns we've all been seeing the last few years.
I'm not the cause of global warming and neither are you, but because we burn fuel in our cars which harms the Ozone layer that makes us a part of the problem! Only a tiny part of it but a part of it none the less!
I'm not a very "green" guy and never have been. I'm not all that interested in trying to spread the word and stop people using their cars to get about because they're killing the planet! I like my car and will continue to drive it (for as long as I can afford to pay for the fuel for it!) but if there's an alternative fuel source out there (and there is) that's cheaper to buy then I'll use it and if it's helping protect the environment then that's an added bonus.
I'm not the cause of global warming and neither are you, but because we burn fuel in our cars which harms the Ozone layer that makes us a part of the problem! Only a tiny part of it but a part of it none the less!
I'm not a very "green" guy and never have been. I'm not all that interested in trying to spread the word and stop people using their cars to get about because they're killing the planet! I like my car and will continue to drive it (for as long as I can afford to pay for the fuel for it!) but if there's an alternative fuel source out there (and there is) that's cheaper to buy then I'll use it and if it's helping protect the environment then that's an added bonus.
Reader Feedback
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naturegirl7 Oct 23, 2008 @ 5:22 pm | delete
- Great information. You may not be a green kind of guy, but your lens certainly is. Please consider joining my new (and first) group Naturally Native Squids. The Naturally Native Squids group welcomes lenses about nature, animals (both wild and rescued), native plants, gardening (especially ecologically healthy gardening), green living including recycling and all things natural. I hope to see you there.
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shwetashah Oct 23, 2008 @ 1:28 am | delete
- Really nice lens and good information. Welcome to Save Earth Group
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lakeerieartists Oct 22, 2008 @ 5:16 pm | delete
- Great lens. Very useful information. Welcome to Living the Green Organic Lifestyle.
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Alternative Fuels
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