| Abstract: | Alternative fuels: Possibilities and problems . The world's supply of fossil fuels is limited. The motor vehicle industry is striving to develop substitutes for crude oil and reduce its rate of consumption in the following ways. 1. Reduction of fuel consumption through improvements in the vehicle (weight, aerodynamics), the engine and the transmission as well as engine-transmission management. Future development possibilities along these lines are presented. 2. Utilisation of alternative fuels. The various possible alternative fuels are compared with one another and evaluated. Gaseous fuels (LPG) and liquid fuels (methanol and ethanol) appear promising, since the technical problems which still exist can be solved in the medium-term. Designs are presented both for vehicles operating on pure alcohol and for vehicles using an alcohol-petrol mixture. Preliminary experimental results are reported. |
