Fuels For the Future

Fuels for the Future

The pros and cons of different fuel alternatives for the economy and mother nature.

High gasoline prices have sparked a lot of interest among consumers in vehicles that can stretch their fuel dollars. Concern about air pollution, carbon-dioxide emissions, and U.S. dependence on imported oil is also driving research into nonpetroleum-based fuels and technology.

The good news is that automakers and other researchers have been working on a variety of alternatives to conventional gasoline-fueled, internal-combustion engines. But the reality is that only hybrids and upcoming "clean diesels" promise to be practical alternatives in the near future.

The petroleum problem

Some analysts see the recent spike in gasoline prices as a sign of things to come. Experts argue that it's only a matter of time before increasing worldwide demand and tightening supplies of this declining resource drive pump prices still higher, especially because the U.S. is increasingly dependent on oil imports from politically unstable parts of the world.

Predictions about when this will happen range from a decade or two to more than a century. For example, Colin Campbell, a petroleum geologist and former consultant to oil companies, has stated that petroleum will run short worldwide in about 20 years, by which time the U.S. will be importing 90 percent of its oil. In contrast, Michael C. Lynch, president of the consultant group Strategic Energy and Economic Research, says, "The pessimists underestimate how much oil will come on-line in the next few years. We'll still be using oil a hundred years from now, but a lot less of it. We'll see a gradual shift away from oil as nonemitting alternatives become more feasible."

Aside from pricing and supply issues, burning fossil fuels creates pollution-related health hazards and acid rain, and adds billions of tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) to the atmosphere annually. CO2 is thought to be a major contributor to global warming.

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