Most petrol-heads would agree that there’s nothing like the appeal, sound and power of a 5.0L V10 engine – but let’s be honest: It’s time to change that mindset… the appeal of clean air rates pretty high too! So what are the alternatives to gasoline:
Battery-electric and hybrid-electric vehicles:
Battery-electric cars draw all their power from an onboard battery, while hybrids use a combination of battery and gas motors to drastically increase fuel efficiency.
Biodiesel:
A non-toxic fuel made from vegetable oils, animal fats and waste cooking oil. Biodiesel can be mixed with regular diesel fuel in just about any diesel engine and helps reduce emissions by about 60 to 80 per cent…
Ethanol:
A fuel made from the fermented sugars and starches found in agricultural products like corn and wheat. Ethanol burns with roughly 40 per cent lower emissions than gasoline and is a renewable fuel source. Most modern gasoline engines can already run safely and effectively on a blend of up to 85 per cent ethanol and 15 per cent gasoline and many gas stations across Canada already offer gas with 10 per cent ethanol content.
Fuel Cells & Hydrogen:
Probably the most interesting and controversial option are fuel cells. Fuel cells combine hydrogen and oxygen to create electrical current, with the hydrogen capable of being sourced from a variety of fuels. Engines running on hydrogen produce virtually no emissions other than water and vapour, and can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by between 30 and 90 per cent depending on the source fuel used.cross Canada already offer gas with 10 per cent ethanol content.
Natural Gas:
Popular in Europe and Asia, natural gas is abundant and runs cleaner than gasoline. Many taxi and bus fleets already run on the fuel. Regular gasoline vehicles have to be modified to run on natural gas, but conversions can be expensive.
Propane:
Propane is a clean-burning fuel that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 20 per cent and also contains many fewer toxic pollutants than gasoline. Contrary to popular belief, propane is actually less likely to ignite in a car accident than gasoline, due to requiring higher concentrations and a much higher temperature to ignite.
Source: Metro
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