Types Of Alternative Fuel Vehicles
May 13th, 2010 | 
Author: Types Of Alternative Fuel Vehicles
As the new millennium begins people have never been so ecoconscious. In recent years the imminent threat of global warming has compelled us to reconsider how we do and make things. This is most especially true when it comes to our daily means of transport the car which unfortunately ranks among the major contributors of air pollution and noise pollution in the world. Thankfully scientists are continuing to explore new ways to address this. One of these is the use of alternative fuel vehicles AFV.
An AFV is any vehicle that doesnt run on petrol or diesel fuel although a car can be considered an AFV if it doesnt rely exclusively on petroleum to function like hybrid cars which rely on petrol fuel and electricity. What are the different kinds of AFV? Lets find out.
Hybrids. Hybrids use both gasoline and electricity to run. These vehicles normally feature an internal combustion engine and a battery pack which combine to give the vehicle its propulsion power. Hybrid cars have gained popularity over the years the most common examples are the Toyota Prius and the Honda Insight.
Battery Electric Vehicles. As its name applies a BEV depends on the power of its battery pack. BEVs are among the cleanest vehicles because they dont produce any carbon emission at all. Battery types may include nickel cadmium lithiumion zincair or leadacid batteries.
Biofuel Cars. Bioalcohol or Ethanol and Biodiesel are two types of biofuels that can be used on automobiles. There are still biofuel cars available today but most prefer the flexiblefuel vehicle.
Flexiblefuel Vehicles. With FFVs you can use more than one type of alternative fuel. This is possible through the use of a multifuel engine which allows you to mix certain alternative fuels in the tank and is combusted as one. These cars are mostly found in the US and South America.
GasPowered Cars. Certain types of AFVs also run using compressed natural gas biogas liquid petroleum gas or autogas nitrogen gas propane and hydrogen. Usually these cars are your standard petroleumusing vehicles whose engines are modified to burn the alternative gaseous fuels.
The Solar Car. Solar cars use solar panels in order to harness the power of the sun. This type of AFV has been around for decades but unfortunately no practical prototype has been developed yet for the masses. Nevertheless countless solar car contests and races are being held every year and participated in by schools and universities all over the world.
AFVs may be environmentfriendly but it has its disadvantages too. AFVs are still a bit more expensive than the usual cars in the market and the availability of alternative fuels is still very limited. But still the future promises more developments new possibilities. Who knows? The first commerciallysuccessful AFV may just be around the corner.
About the writer: Guile Canencia is a writer and researcher for the IBC Japan Team. He is an avid blogger and likes to play soccer on weekends. IBC Japan specializes in exporting used cars from Japan with regional distribution centers worldwide.
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