Fact Sheet: Sequestering Greenhouse Gases from Landfills, Animal Waste, Sewage, and Other Sources Via Biomethane Production
3/21/2007
Biogas, a mixture of methane and other gases produced from the decomposition of organic materials, is produced naturally in landfills and from processing of animal waste, sewage, crop waste, and cellulosic and non-cellulosic crops. If biomethane made from recovered biogas were used in vehicles, it is estimated that it would reduce greenhouse gases by 500 million metric tons of CO2 per year, or the emissions equivalent of removing 90 million light-duty gasoline vehicles from the roads.
Research Advances Cellulosic Ethanol - NREL Leads the Way
3/1/2007
The National Renewable Energy Lab is investigating more inexpensive pretreatment methods for cellulose that break down hemicellulose and lignin. Other areas of research include enzymatic hydrolysis, improved fermentation, process integration, and thermochemical conversion.
Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report, March 2007
3/1/2007
The March 2007 Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report is a quarterly report keeping you up to date on the prices of alternative fuels in the U.S. and their relation to gasoline and diesel prices. This issue discusses prices that were gathered from Clean Cities coordinators and stakeholders between February 21, 2007 and March 2, 2007, and then averaged in order to determine regional price trends by fuel and variability in fuel price within regions and among regions. The prices collected for this report represent retail, at-the-pump sales prices for each fuel, including Federal and state motor fuel taxes.
Table 1 illustrates that alternative fuel prices relative to conventional fuels vary, with some (propane and biodiesel) higher and some (E85 and CNG) lower. CNG is about 36 cents less than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis, while E85 is about 20 cents less per gallon than gasoline.
Authors: Laughlin, M.D.
Survey of E85 Fuel Dispensing Operations in the U.S.
2/1/2007
E85 fuel, consisting of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline, is currently being dispensed at public and private fueling stations using the same type of equipment approved for gasoline. Underwriters Laboratories (UL) has not listed dispensing equipment for use with E85 fuel blends. Current dispensing equipment listed by UL is limited to fuels with a maximum of 15% alcohol. It is understood that high concentrations of ethanol are significantly more corrosive than conventional 15% ethanol blends. This may result in E85 chemically degrading the materials used in fuel dispenser components, and may ultimately affect the dispenser's ability to contain the fuel. UL is currently reviewing research to gather information needed to develop revised certification requirements covering high alcohol concentration blends.
Alameda-Contra Costa Transit District (AC Transit)Fuel Cell Transit Buses: Preliminary Results
2/1/2007
This report includes preliminary evaluation results on three prototype fuel cell-powered transit buses operating at AC Transit in Oakland, California, since March 2006 and 6 baseline diesel buses that are similar in design to the fuel cell business. This report describes the equipment used and provides early experience details, lessons learned, and early experience details.
Authors: Chandler, K.; Eudy, L.
SunLine Transit Agency Hydrogen-Powered Transit Buses: Preliminary Evaluation Results
2/1/2007
This preliminary report covers NREL's evaluation of hydrogen and fuel cell buses in service at SunLine Transit Agency in Thousand Palms, California. The report includes 11 months of performance data on two hydrogen-fueled buses: one fuel cell bus and one hybrid hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engine bus. The report also outlines the overall experience of the transit agency and its project partners in demonstrating these buses.
Authors: Chandler, K.; Eudy, L.
Examining Hydrogen Transitions
2/1/2007
This report describes the results of efforts to identify key analytic issues associated with modeling a transition to hydrogen as a fuel for light-duty vehicles.
Authors: Plotkin, S.
Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle R&D Plan, External Draft
2/1/2007
The U.S. Department of Energy is supporting the development of hybrid vehicles that have the ability to operate in botn electrical/mechanical and electric-only modes recharging from a standard electric outlet. This is in line with President Bush's challenge of technology that would allow 40 miles electric range, enough to satisfy approximately 70 percent of daily U.S. travel. In May 2006, the FreedomCAR and Vehicle Technology Program convened a 2-day meeting to discuss a path forward. This report is the external draft of the research & development plan for the plug-in hybrid electric vehicle program.
Life-cycle energy and greenhouse gas emission impacts of different corn ethanol plant types
1/1/2007
Virtually all of the ethanol used for transportation has been produced from corn. During the period of fuel ethanol growth, corn farming productivity has increased dramatically, and energy use in ethanol production plants has been reduced by almost half. The majority of corn ethanol plants are powered by natural gas. In this paper, we examine nine corn ethanol plant types--categorized according to the type of process fuels employed, use of combined heat and power, and production of wet distiller grains and solubles. We found that these ethanol plant types can have distinctly different energy and greenhouse gas emission effects on a full fuel-cycle basis. Our results show that in order to achieve energy and greenhouse gas emission benefits, researchers need to closely examine and differentiate among the types of production plants used to produce corn ethanol.
Authors: Wang, M.; Wu, M.; Huo, Hong
The Evolution of Powertrain Technology 2008 and Beyond: Engines, Hybrids, Battery Electric, Fuel Cells, Transmissions
1/1/2007
The objectives of this study were to provide automotive suppliers and OEMs with a set of plausible alternatives that cover the future vehicle market, crude oil prices, regulatory and business environment; provide an assessment of benefits and costs of various powertrain technologies; identify the technical and market barriers that must be overcome to bring these technologies to market; provide a forecast of the potential market share of these technologies.
Authors: Gott, P.; Linna, J-R; Mello, J.
Tackling Climate Change in the U.S.: Potential Carbon Emissions Reductions from Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy by 2030
1/1/2007
Energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies have the potential to provide most, if not all, of the U.S. carbon emissions reductions that will be needed to help limit the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide to 450 to 500 ppm. The document includes a section on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. This section focuses on plug-in hybrid electric vehicle technology, which adds additional battery capacity and charging capability to current hybrid electric vehicle technology. Plug-in vehicles thereby make possible substantial vehicle operation on energy derived from the electrical grid rather than from gasoline.
Authors: Kutscher, C., Editor; Lilienthal,P.; Brown, H.
Performance of Automotive Fuel Cell Systems with Nanostructured Thin Film Catalysts
1/1/2007
Cost and durability are generally regarded as the major challenges to commercialization of fuel cells. Size, weight, and system complexity are also important barriers to adoption of fuel cells in light duty vehicles. In addition, thermal and water management for fuel cells are outstanding issues. Fuel cell operation at lower temperatures creates a small difference between the operating and ambient temperatures, necessitating large heat exchangers. Fuel and air feed streams need to be humidified for proper operation of fuel cells. In this paper, we evaluate the prospects of overcoming the barriers of cost, durability, weight, volume, thermal management, and water management by using nanostructured thin film catalysts (NTFCs) in membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs) In laboratory tests, the NSTF catalysts have shown significantly enhanced stability against surface area loss from Pt dissolution when compared to conventional Pt/C dispersed catalysts under both accelerated voltage cycling from 0.6 to 1.2 V and real-time start stop cycles. Also NSTF catalyst support-whiskers have shown total resistance to corrosion when held at potentials up to 1.5 V for 3 hours.
Authors: Ahluwalia, R.; Wang, X.; Lasher, S.; Sinha, J.; Yang, Y.; Sriramulu, S.
King County Metro Transit Hybrid Articulated Buses Final Evaluation Results
12/1/2006
This is the final report on hybrid electric buses in service at King County Metro Transit in King County, Washington. The report includes 12 months of performance data on ten 60-ft. New Flyer buses with a hybrid propulsion system designed and built by GM Allison. This fleet is the largest application of the GM Allison hybrid propulsion system to date. The report also outlines the overall experience of the transit agency and their project partners in operating these advanced technology buses in revenue service.
Authors: Chandler, K.; Walkowicz, K.
Technology Roadmap for the 21st Century Truck Program A Government-Industry Research Partnership
12/1/2006
The 21st Century Truck Program will support the development and implementation of commercially viable technologies that will dramatically cut fuel use and emissions of commercial trucks and buses while enhancing their safety and affordability as well as maintaining or enhancing performance. The innovations resulting from this program will reduce dependence on foreign oil, improve our nation's air quality, provide advanced technology for military vehicles, and enhance the competitiveness of the U.S. truck and bus industry while ensuring safe and affordable freight and bus transportation for the nation's economy. The 21st Century Truck Program's goals and research objectives are to; improve fuel efficiency, reduce emissions, enhance safety, reduce total owning and operating costs, and maintain or enhance performance. The partnership's federal component is led by the U.S. Department of Energy in cooperation with the Office of Science and Technology Policy and the Office of Management and Budget. Other participating federal agencies are the U.S. Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The federal government brings to the table its resources for research and development, including the capabilities resident in government laboratories. The industrial participants of the partnership are truck and bus manufacturers, their suppliers, and their trade associations.
Fuel Permeation from Automotive Systems: E0, E6, E10, E20 and E85
12/1/2006
An earlier CRC report (CRC Project E-65) investigated the effects of three different fuels on the permeation rates of the fuel systems from 10 different California vehicles, covering model years from 1978 to 2001. As a result of that study, four issues were identified for further study in the present report: (1) investigate permeation characteristics of "near zero" evaporative emission control systems scheduled for California in MY 2004 and later; (2) determine if changes in ethanol content affect permeation levels; (3) establish the permeation effects of E85 in a flexible fuel vehicle; (4) determine if permeation rates are sensitive to changes in aromatics content of the fuel.
Authors: Haskew, H.M.; Libery, T.F.; McClement, D.