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Monday, November 26, 2007

Ethanol Is In As Alternative Fuel For Ford

The Ford Motor Company is currently exerting much effort in promoting ethanol as a new source of alternative fuel. They are currently the leader in bringing back and keeping ethanol as a fuel source. This may be part of their whole values and history for going back in time, Henry Ford, the founder of this huge automobile company, had built a quadricycle that used ethanol as its source of power.

Ethanol is indeed one of the more rational sources of fuel for it is very much renewable compared to gas. In fact, studies have it that this fuel source could be taking the lead one day in the race for the top source of fuel. Primarily, this is because ethanol could be derived from virtually limitless feedstocks which could be replaced after harvest. On the other hand, petroleum or gas sources could get depleted. With this, Ford is planning on being the leader in this huge race and is planning on crafting around 2 million vehicles that could work with ethanol.

As per its effects on the environment? Brian Rippon, the policy manager of Ford Government Affairs' Global Public Policy team, claims, "It can also reduce greenhouse gas emissions because the process of making it recaptures carbon. No other currently available vehicle technology or alternative fuel - including hybrids and natural gas - provides those benefits." Ford vice president of Environmental and Safety Engineering Sue Cischke also adds, "Our FFVs are capable of operating on up to 85 percent ethanol (E85), or gasoline, or any mixture in between. And all of our gasoline-powered engines are designed to operate on 10 percent ethanol or E10."

Aside from the already mentioned benefits that the environment and motorists would be receiving by using ethanol as a power source, ethanol also costs much less compared to gasoline. However, one of the main challenges for Ford today is that there is essentially a lack factories or infrastructures that would be able to produce more and more supply of this fuel. However, they seem to have already found an answer to that problem. According to Tom Brewer, the president of Ford Thailand, "Ford has every ambition to put more ethanol vehicles onto the congested roads of Bangkok and every other major city across the kingdom. Ford has the technology and the products to respond today. we're ready if the Thai consumer and Thai government are ready to support it."
Tip! From fat or vegetable oil through a chemical process called transesterification comes biodiesel an alternative fuel. This process breaks apart the glycerin from the fat or vegetable oil, creating two new products, glycerin and biodiesel.

You can shop at Ford Parts Online for Ford tailgate, Ford rear body panel and other auto parts.

Jay Stevens works as a consultant for an established auto parts store in the country. He has expertise in automotive technology and has extensive knowledge on the auto parts industry.

Ethanol Fuel As An Alternative

Ethanol fuel is changing our lives and changing the economy in ways no one anticipated before, with energy costs rising every day, there has been an increased interest in ethanol fuel. Ethanol is a variety of alcohol that can be produced in a natural fashion, similar to the way in which alcoholic beverages are produced. Ethanol can be used by itself in some specially designed vehicles, but it can also be used as a fuel additive, stretching traditional fuels in times of economic or environmental hardship. Ethanol is used today by more people ever before, simply because of the cheap alternative to the soaring gas prices.

Using ethanol fuel as an alternative to gas does require motorists to get a special ethanol kit and install it in their cars, but since gas prices have been unstable in the last years many people feel that making that kind of investment will prove financially profitable in the future.

Ethanol fuel that is derived from crops has advantages over traditional fossil fuels. The ethanol fuel is obtained from the sugars and starches in crops like corn and grains. It also burns cleaner than petroleum based fuels due to its chemical composition, alleviating some of the strain placed on the environment by exhaust emissions. The increased consumption of corn for ethanol use has already started to affect the corn farms projections of yearly crops.

Blended ethanol fuel has proven to be an effective source of energy for several parts of the country, as well as other parts of the globe. E10 is a typical mixture. It is common in the Midwestern United States. Many other countries around the world start to consider using ethanol instead of regular fuel, Denmark for example, has also begun using this type of ethanol fuel. It appears to be doing well, though its use is not as extensive as many of its proponents had hoped it would be. There is still a long way for ethanol to become a natural option for fuel, the United States had used ethanol fuel for less than one percent of its gasoline needs in the year 2002.
Tip! Learn more about alternative fuels and flexible fuel vehicles, including what vehicles are flexible fuel vehicles, and where to find E85, at the United States Government's Alternative Fuel Data Center at http://www.eere.

The other big issue surrounding ethanol is the environmental issue, it is still not absolutely clear that ethanol is in fact environment friendly, and whether the environmental aspects of ethanol fuel are as good as they have been previously described by the supporters of ethanol fuel use. The growing concern is that while the use of ethanol by itself may be good for the environment, the resources and work done to provide the production of the ethanol could be potentially dangerous for the forests, rainforests and areas where the corn and other ethanol producing resources are being grown. While it is true that the fuel can be made from renewable resources there is evidence that some rainforests are actually being cleared to make space for crops that are used in the production of ethanol. As the controversy regarding the production of ethanol and its dangers, it is very clear that this alternative source of energy is becoming more and more popular.
Tip! Other choices we might make could include the use of synthetic lubricants, alternative fuels such as ethanol, particularly E85, or biodiesel.

Simon Oldmann is an avid writer and a green activist, he has been writing about Ethanol use since the growing popularity of Ethanol these last years, Simon writes for ZupaTips.com

More Customers Opting For Alternative Fuel Cars

The prices of gas and fuel have already gone down but it seems like the market has already learned much during that experience. You see, according to dealers and retailers as well as manufacturers of vehicles in the auto market, more and more American customers are purchasing cars and vehicles that run on alternative fuel. The list of alternative fuel vehicles include those hybrid vehicles as well as those that could run on diesel and ethanol.

According to Fred Webber, the current president and chief executive of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, "Our priority is to get the word out that alternative fuel autos are on sale now, and these vehicles are the quickest way to reduce gasoline use. No one wants to see high gas prices and concerns about energy security, but the good news about today's energy situation is that more Americans are purchasing one of the many fuel efficient automobiles on sale today." The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers is actually an organization that represents nine of the automakers which sell their products around the globe as well as in the United States.

Sure enough, more and more people are opting to own one unit of these alternative fuel vehicles. One thing is that they would be getting much on savings. Fuel prices may have gone down but the alternative sources of energy for a vehicle to run do cost much, much less. Plus, maintaining them is not that difficult for many replacements parts for these alternative vehicles are readily available in the market along with other partslike Pontiac performance parts. The auto world is now opening up their arms to these alternative fuel vehicles so much so that keeping them in good condition now becomes an easy and economical task.

Webber even further adds, "Every model of auto is available today with some kind of fuel efficient technology, such as variable valve timing, continuously variable transmissions, and cylinder deactivation. We urge all consumers to check out these fuel efficient options on dealers' lots today." The list of fuel efficient vehicles in the market includes hybrids like the Honda Insight, the Toyota Prius, the Ford Escape Hybrid, and the Toyota Sienna Hybrid.
Tip! There's a lot of hope that alternative fuel technologies developed by some of the smaller companies will become commercially viable and help support the sector. As a result, stocks for these companies are expected to soar.

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As a former news correspondent for an auto-related website, Stacey has gathered extensive knowledge and experience in the automotive industry. This 34 year old mother of two from Memphis is a genuine car lover.

Biodiesel - What Are The Benefits of This Alternative Fuel Source?

With the price of gas soaring and our country's dependency on foreign fuel, are you looking for an alternative fuel source? Biodiesel may be just that fuel source you are looking for. What is biodiesel you may be asking? Biodiesel is an alternative fuel source made from vegetable oil. You can use this fuel in any vehicle that uses regular petroleum diesel fuel. There are places in some states that you can buy biodiesel fuel, but you can also make it yourself with a biodiesel kit.

This alternative fuel source has many benefits compared to petroleum. One benefit is the price. Biodiesel fuel can be produced for much less than its petroleum counterpart. If you are making it yourself, you will need to purchase a biodiesel kit. These can be gotten for a couple thousand dollars, you may be thinking "Wow, that's a lot of money." But if you think about it, once the savings over gas prices add up to the cost of the kit, all savings after that go straight to your wallet. This will definitely put a little breathing room into your budget. If you are not making biodiesel yourself, and are lucky enough to live in an area where there is a biodiesel station, your savings will add up a lot faster.
Tip! To learn more about alternative fuel systems for home heating and cooling visit: http://www.energyefficientheatingandcooling.

Another very important benefit of this fuel alternative is it is very environmentally friendly. It is completely biodegradable. Emissions are almost nonexistent. Biodiesel fuel burns clean and is nontoxic. This means not only does it help the planet but it is not harmful to humans as well. Since biodiesel also does not contain sulfur, its emissions do not contribute to acid rain. Using biodiesel fuel also reduces the cancer causing particulates from being released into the air.

One benefit closely related to the environmental issue is the fact that biodiesel is a renewable resource. This means it can be made over and over. It does not have to be pumped out of the ground. You need some more biodiesel fuel? Just plant another crop and you can make some more. This has a hidden advantage of allowing farmers to make their farms profitable again. This in turn helps the economy as well as the environment.
Tip! When most people hear the term �alternative fuel vehicle� the vast majority will think of hybrid vehicles, the gas and electric combination. In the 2006 model year vehicle line-up for cars the only hybrid choices are Japanese.

One other benefit of using biodiesel as an alternative fuel source is safety. The point at which biodiesel will catch fire is much higher than petroleum based fuel. This makes biodiesel much safer to transport and store. It also means if a vehicle that is using biodiesel is involved in an accident it is much less likely to explode. The safety issues alone make this a very attractive alternative fuel.

Biodiesel fuel has a lot of benefits as an alternative fuel source. So, are there any disadvantages to using biodiesel? The only one is if you have a vehicle made before about 1994, you will need to keep a close eye on the hoses of the fuel system. Biodiesel fuel can soften the rubber used to make the hoses. After 1994, most vehicles were made with synthetic hoses and this is not an issue. Another issue you should be aware of is the first few times you use biodiesel you may get a clogged up fuel system. This is because biodiesel fuel will clean out all the old gunk in your fuel system. It will pull all the residue left on the walls of your gas tank off, which in turn may clog up some of the lines. If you are aware of this and watching out for it you should not have any problems.
Tip! None of this alternative fuel talk has escaped the attention of the automobile manufacturers, big oil companies, or environmental groups. Everyone is looking at the possibilities in order to find a way to make some money when all is said and done.

As an alternative fuel source, biodiesel is top notch. It is a renewable source, since it is made from vegetable oil all you do is grow another crop. This in turn allows farmers to make their farms profitable again (another hidden benefit). It is less expensive to produce, good for your wallet. It is environmentally friendly, not causing a lot of the problems as petroleum based fuel. It is also human friendly, less cancer causing issues, as well as breathing issues. It is also safer to transport and store. It also lessens our country's dependency on foreign oil, this would most certainly help our economy.

Rae Bennett is the owner and author of Want Info About, offering information on a variety of subjects. For more information and resources about this subject visit Biodiesel.

This article may be reprinted in full as long as no changes are made to it and the resource box and live links are left intact. All rights reserved. Copyright http://www.wantinfoabout.com.

Military Alternative Fuel Vehicles

The United States military has known since the days of General Patton that fuel is paramount to fighting a war. Without the fuel your logistical supply chain is at a standstill and in the new battlespace at risk of detection and instant annihilation. It is for this reason the Military is looking into the future to come up with new ways to power our hardware and future fighting force. This subject recently came up in an online think tank when one member stated;

"The Military Plans Tests in Search for an Alternative to Oil-Based Fuel; Maybe another alternative, for the wind powered generators with the wind speed of about 300 mph their should be enough to create enough pressure to drive the generator to run a electric turbo engine, it would help reduce the fuel consumption for the military."
Tip! At this point, it's anyone's guess what the future holds for alternative fuel vehicles.

I believe if I were looking at futuristic ways to propel vehicles that I would indeed consider military vehicles made of Titanium Dioxide Super Coatings which would be charged to take the ambient air between sheets of the coating or skin and use the low pressure between to create precipitation and then split the H20 and use the hydrogen to run a fuel cell on board instead of fossil fuel and then simply release the oxygen into the atmosphere or use it for another military purpose? Consider this in 2006.

Lance Winslow

Alternative Fuel Gap

There is always a crisis in the World somewhere and just pick up any newspaper and we can see that is fact. During the Russian and USA standoff which we conveniently called the; Cold War there was a "Missile Gap" and so we had to spend money to build more missiles and of course this is good news for Defense Contractors, as there is a lot less costs in building missiles than aircraft and since those missile may never be fired they would not need lots of pilots to fly them or fuel to put inside them and use up.

This means more money can be paid for the missiles themselves. Good deal, everyone wins, our nation is protected and all is well right? Sure one could argue it worked.

Now we have an alternative fuel gap and one, which we must close because we are addicted to foreign Middle Eastern Oil. Then only way to keep prices at acceptable rates for our civilizations economy is to threaten the Oil Cartel; OPEC with alternative energy sources and assure them that we are spending money, big money in Research and Development Costs to build alternative fuel vehicles, trucks, aircraft and etc.


So, we need to promote the Alternative Fuel Gap as a huge crisis and promote up and coming scientists and researchers to find ways to close that Gap and in doing so everyone wins. The Alternative Fuel Gap is serious, so consider this in 2006, because $3.00 per gallon is completely unacceptable you see?

Lance Winslow