Electric Vehicles. Everyone is talking about them. Everyone thinks that they are the alternative to ICE engines. They are the future. But, the future is uncertain, and you must not come to conclusions so early. EVs aren’t the only “new” thing out there which might be able to replace internal combustion engines, but there are others. And in case you are tired of hearing about everyone babbling about EVs and how “cool” they are, this is the blog post for you. Here, I will discuss the alternatives to conventional petrol/diesel/CNG cars with ICE engines that aren’t EVs. Basically, alternatives to EVs.
1. Hydrogen-Hydrogen can be a good, clean alternative to ICE engines. Hydrogen cars give no harmful tailpipe emissions, only water. Nitin Gadkari bought one for a reason, eh?
2. Air-Compressed air can replace petrol in a combustion engine to drive the pistons and produce power.
Stored in 4500psi tanks, air as an energy source is much less energy-dense but does produce zero tailpipe emissions. Several concepts have been mooted over the years and some car makers such as Tata have even proposed mainstream air-powered cars.
3.Nitrogen-Liquid nitrogen stored in a pressurized tank can be heated to produce high-pressure gas. This can be used to drive a piston or rotary engine.
Liquid nitrogen is, however, a less efficient energy carrier than fossil fuels, and still requires electricity to produce it.
4.Heat-Two-thirds of the energy generated by petrol or diesel is wasted as heat.
Thermoelectric technology, which converts heat into electricity, can help reduce this and is already under development by several car makers.
One solution is to use thermoelectric panels to convert waste exhaust pipe heat into electricity, which can cut fuel consumption by 5 per cent.
5. Biofuels-Biofuels such as bioethanol (which can be used instead of petrol), are made from corn and sugarcane, whereas biodiesel is made from vegetable oils and animal fats. Both replace non-renewable crude oil-derived fuels. The best types are second generation biofuels which are produced from sustainable sources rather than those grown for food. Many consider them the best medium-term solution to sustainable fuels. Biodiesel is also a thing for diesel enthusiasts. Brazil is know for biofuels.
6. Flex-fuel vehicles- The concept of flex-fuel vehicles is really interesting. It means a car that can run on more than one fuel. The whole concept can be really interesting.
7. Synthetic fuels-Synthetic fuels are a carbon-neutral fuel type that can be used in internal combustion engines (ICE). Carbon dioxide is captured during the manufacturing process (detailed below) and can be used to produce synthetic petrol or diesel and natural gas. If you run the fuel refinery on renewable energy like wind power, you’ve got the ultimate in green fuel, without a battery pack in sight. Synthetic fuels are made by separating water into its constituent parts of oxygen and hydrogen, via electrolysis. The hydrogen is then mixed with CO2 to make synthetic methanol, which you can then refine into synthetic petrol or diesel to fuel your existing ICE car in a way that effectively consumes CO2 rather than pumping it into the atmosphere.
So, here goes. Would love to know your opinion and tell me if I missed something out.
