Compare petrol with an alternative fuel source for motor vehicles

Introduction:
The term “alternative fuel source” has the different countries thinking about problems related to how natural resources are becoming scarce, and its use is a threat to the our environment. As petroleum (petrol) we use in our motor vehicles is a harmful gas that is released into the environment with its affects on our ozone layer which contributes to air pollution. Petroleum powers most motor vehicles, but it can damage our environment. Scientist have discovered alternative fuel source, but the most common method would be using ethanol. This essay will discuss petrol to ethanol gas, as it is a popular idea or invention for an alternative form of gas to power motor vehicles. The comparison would be based firstly on the history of both sources and how reliable it is for the future generation.

History:
[Petrol]
The history of petroleum gas is a remarkable finds as it plays a big part to our everyday life, even though we might not know. The petroleum industry began when Edwin L. Drake drilled a successful oil well at Titusville Pennsylvania in 1859. This was then experimented with to form petroleum gas. The first motor engine was powered by using petroleum with coal gas, invented by Jean JosephÉtienne Lenoir in1863 which is similar to the modern engine used in motor vehicles 20th Century. As a result petroleum is a natural resource founded by mankind and used to power most motor vehicles. Petroleum, in one form or another, is not a recent discovery but is now an important part of politics, society, and technology. The invention of the internal combustion engine was the major influence in the rise in the importance of petroleum.

[Ethanol]
The history of ethanol dates back to the 19th century. Long before the automobile, corn was being turned into an alcohol fuel called ethanol. In 1908, Henry Ford designed his first Model T to run on ethanol. He called it the fuel of the future. Ethanol has been around for many years and it has only come into effect on motor vehicles as the challenge is on to reduce air pollution and global warming. It has been used by humans since prehistoric time for an ingredient to alcohol beverages; it has been put to good use for providing motorist with an alternative fuel source to power their motor vehicle as it seen as an environmentally friendly and a renewable source of energy.

Future situation:
[Petrol]
Petroleum may not exist in the not too distant future as it is becoming scarce. Also its use should be reduced as it has an effect on the environment. As petrol prices are increasing by the in recent years, it has become perfectly clear that the world’s reliance on fossil fuels for transport is unsustainable. To begin with, the days of cheap and easily available oil are numbered. In addition, fossil fuels are the main reason for global warming, a process that practically all climate scientists say we have to deal with – not soon, not tomorrow, but now this shows how petrol will be likely ruled out a fuel source in the future.
[Ethanol]
Ethanol is a candidate for alternative fuel source in the future, because it is a renewable power source. 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. It 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.


References:
Environment and Health Administration. (2010). Fuel the future with bioethanol. Retrieved from
http://www.best-europe.org/upload/BEST_documents/info_documents/BEST_leaflet_v2.pdf

Landis, S. (2007). Alternative Fuel: Ethanol. A Brief History of Ethanol, E85 & Why Our Cars Don't Yet Run on Corn. Retrieved from http://www.suite101.com/content/a-brief-history-of-ethanol-a27840

Pafko, W. (2000). Case Study: Petroleum Origins of the Industry. Retrieved from http://www.pafko.com/history/h_petro.html

Sharma, A. (2007). Ethanol: Answer or Question. Greystone Heights Elementary School, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Retrieved from http://www.odec.ca/projects/2007/shar7a3/

Solomon, J. (2010). An introduction to Ethanol. Retrieved from
http://www.articlealley.com/article_1386557_31.html

Transportation Fuels: Ethanol. (2008). Ethanol clean renewable fuel. Retrieved from http://www.need.org/needpdf/Ethanol.pdf

This blog will debate that Ethanol is a viable alternative to using Petroleum Gas.


This site explains all the facts and a brief summary about Ethanol.
The term “alternative fuel source” has the nation thinking about problems linking to the facts of how natural resources, such as petroleum is becoming scarce, also destroying our environment.
Petroleum keeps us going, but it can damage our environment.


This site looks at ethanol as a gas, and gives a brief explanation about the positive and negative outcomes of turning it into an alternative fuel source.


This website shows the history behind ethanol and its earlier uses.Ethanol has been used as fuel in the United States since at least 1908 with the Ford Model T. The history of ethanol gas in the past and how it was used. It has an impact on how it operates in our lives now, which is an alternative to petrol gas in our motor vehicles.


This sites looks at the greenhouses effect as shown in the first graph that petrol is the highest producer of carbon gas to be released into the earth's atmosphere.There are environmental benefits of using ethanol gas such as its marginal energy balance, there is a marginal reduction in greenhouse gas emissions per distance driven. Researchers have also found that ethanol produces less carbon monoxide when it is burned in an internal combustion engine.


This site looks at the future of ethanol in our society. It shows how it is a reliable source of energy as it is a re-newable gas, but also decrease the usage of oil mixed with petroleum gas.

The search for an alternative fuel source still has a long way to go, as there are a lot of other new ideas and alternatives coming to the markets. Ethanol might not cure all of our pollution ills caused by fossil fuels, nor with the current rise in corn prices will ethanol be cheaper than petroleum based fuels. Ethanol first entered the marketplace as a biological fuel due to an act of Congress in 1978 but now used in modified engines of motor vehicles. I would suggest that ethanol is a good replacement to petroleum as research shows it links to positive outcomes.