Motivation for the Study
Many automobile manufacturers in car producing countries are taking an interest in the renewable fuels as an alternative energy source for vehicles. This is due to the challenges caused by the difference in demand and supply of conventional energy sources like fossil fuels and the environmental degradation associated with them (Liu, 2015). Renewable fuels are more efficient than the current fuels used to power vehicles and their use will significantly reduce the fuel costs incurred by consumers. Renewable energy sources cause minimal environmental pollution, and its utilization will reduce the world’s pollution levels. The use of renewable fuels will also combat the global fuel shortage and ensure energy security.
Future Opportunity for Development and Use of Renewable Fuels in Automobiles
New energy automobiles will be the future of the automobile industry over the next decade. Various car manufacturing companies including Ford, General Motors, and Volkswagen are already investing in renewable fuels projects. The amounts of resources invested in the project differ depending on the intended purpose. Some projects are meant to find ways to align with the development of infrastructure for electric vehicles, others to guarantee energy security, and some to meet regulatory policies. Volkswagen so far is the most aggressive company investing over $1 billion in the projects (Liu, 2015). This is in a bid to overcome General Motors and Toyota as the leading automobile manufacturer in the next decade.
The concept of electronic vehicles has been around for over 30 years. The automobiles use fuel cells that store electricity and channel the current into the direct circuit engines. However, there are several problems associated with the cars that need to be resolved. The problems include; the vehicles travel a limited distance on a full charge, the batteries are big and heavy, and long charge times are required. All these challenges are associated with the batteries used in the vehicles, but manufacturers are confident that they can be solved through technological advancements.
Hybrid cars are a better option than electrical vehicles because they offer the same advantages as the vehicles but with the added convenience available in conventional combustion powered vehicles (Gorski, 2015). The hybrid cars have batteries that provide sufficient power enough for commuting coupled with gas-powered engines that offer propulsion and charge the batteries in long distance travels. In some circumstances, the gas engine main use is charging the battery only. There are some features in the hybrids that allow them to recapture as much energy as possible. For example, when the car brakes, some of the produced energy is sent to the batteries and stored for future use. The cars offer solutions to problems such as limited ranges and long charge times seen in electric vehicles.
Another concept for renewable fuels automobiles is the use of biofuels that is extracted from biological materials. Biofuel-powered vehicles do not the development of new delivery systems. There are several concerns regarding the environment associated with the use of fossil fuels. The first is that to produce biofuels, the raw material that is biomass have to undergo a process that uses renewable sources. The second is that biofuels require huge amounts off biomass that may compete with the world’s food supply. However, ethanol producers have recently found new ways to make ethanol from cellulose. Cellulose is the non-edible part of plants and the most plentiful material in the world. This is important because it means that the production of biofuels will affect the world’s food production. The major advantage of biofuels is that it is commercially ready and is being used today. In Australia, the fuel known as E10 is made of the mixture of 10% ethanol and 90% unleaded petrol is being used. E10 can be safely used in cars made after 1986 (Serpo, 2009).
The final idea considered is the use of hydrogen fuel that only produces water as exhaust. Hydrogen is a gas under normal pressure and has to be compressed under high pressure for use and transport. The vehicles using this type of technology have a hydrogen fuel cell that uses the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen to produce energy. The disadvantage of this fuel source is that hydrogen cannot be found from natural sources and has to be manufactured, and compressing significant amount of hydrogen is very difficult.
Based on the available information, biofuels are currently leading as renewable fuels because they are already widely used. Electric vehicles follow them and hydrogen cars come in last place. Hybrid cars will likely be the automobiles of the future because of their features. A combination of biofuels and electricity engines would be the perfect blend.
Use of Renewable Fuels Information in the Automobile Industry
The use of renewable fuels in the automobile industry to transform the industry may have significant payback but are inhibited by several market barriers (Liu, 2015). These barriers include; consumers’ and producers ignorance on renewable fuels, price distortions, and scarcity of product availability. Consumers to conquer these market barriers require great efforts to relay information to them and enhance their decision analysis capacity. People with interest and knowledge in renewable fuel matters can work in market transformation groups. Their main task would be to educate consumers through public outreach programs. Through market transformation efforts, vehicle manufacturer will be able to reduce market entry costs, achieve economies of scale, influence the reduction in new technology costs, and accelerate the deployment period.
References
Gorski, C. (2015, November 17). Why plug-in-hybrid vehicles may be the car of the (near) future. Retrieved April 10, 2016, from Inside Science, https://www.insidescience.org/content/why-plug-hybrid-vehicles-may-be-car-near-future/2376
Liu, J. (2015). Survey on development of renewable energy car industry. Advanced Science and Technology Letters, 81(4), . doi:10.14257/astl.2015.81.13
Serpo, A. (2009, May 28). Future fuels: What will power tomorrow’s cars? - Roadshow. Retrieved April 10, 2016, from Road Show, http://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/future-fuels-what-will-power-tomorrows-cars/
