Alternative Fuel and Transportation Options: October 2006

U.S. gasoline prices jump up after the short breather for American drivers

Well, I guess we knew it wouldn't be long, but it looks like the gas prices are starting to fluctuate after a nice long drop in the prices. I'm just hoping the prices stay down in this range for a while.
"After reaching a summer high of $3.04 a gallon on August 7, the pump
price had declined 83 cents, dropping for a record 11 weeks in a row.
The rise in the latest gasoline price mirrors last week's increase in crude
oil costs, after a government report showed an unexpected, large drop in
U.S. oil and petroleum product inventories and market concerns emerged about a possible al Qaeda attack on Saudi Arabia's oil facilities.
The price of crude oil accounts for about half the cost of making gasoline.
The new jump at the pump could be short-lived as oil settled down $2.39, or nearly 4 percent, to $58.36 a barrel in Monday trading at the New York Mercantile Exchange after traders became less worried about a threat of terror attacks on Saudi oil sites."
All the best,
Al

Higher weight = Lower gas mileage

Here's an interesting article, from LINDSEY TANNER, an Associated Press Medical Writer.
Although I probably already knew it, I've been surprised by the huge 'apparent' plummet in gas mileage based on the weight of the vehicle. But now, they're saying even small amounts of weight can have a big difference in mileage.
"That's the implication of a new study that says Americans are
burning nearly 1 billion more gallons of gasoline each year than they did in 1960 because of their expanding waistlines. Simply put, more weight in the car means lower gas mileage.
Using recent gas prices of $2.20 a gallon, that translates to about $2.2 billion more spent on gas each year.
'The bottom line is that our hunger for food and our hunger for oil are not
independent.
There is a relationship between the two,' said University of Illinois researcher Sheldon Jacobson, a study co-author."
All the best,
Al Speer

Diesel gets down and dirty, but is coming up clean...

Here is great news about diesel. I've been looking into this quite a bit - because I think biodiesel might be a very viable option.

I'd love to get your thoughts and ideas about it.
(photo by the Associated Press - Sten-Ake Aronsson, a senior vice president at Volvo )

"The auto industry is already transitioning to more advanced engine systems as
new rules go into effect on Sunday that require fuel makers to produce a much
cleaner diesel that is largely sulfur-free.

At first, these so-called
ultra-low sulfur diesel regulations will mostly affect users of heavy-duty
engines that are the workhorses of U.S. industry. But automotive executives say it may not be long before soccer moms across America are driving with
diesel.

'It's a proven technology,' said Sten-Ake Aronsson, a
senior vice president at Volvo Powertrain's plant in Hagerstown, where
production of heavy-duty diesel engines has more than doubled -- to 300 a day --
in the past two years.

Next January, automakers will roll out engine
systems equipped with exhaust-scrubbing technologies that work in tandem with
the cleaner fuel to reduce soot and smog-forming nitrogen oxide emissions.The
auto industry is already transitioning to more advanced engine systems as new
rules go into effect on Sunday that require fuel makers to produce a much
cleaner diesel that is largely sulfur-free."

So, what do you have to say about diesel?
Good?
Bad?
Ugly?
Don't really care?

All the best,
Al

The leaders in fuel-efficient vehicles

A bit more about fuel-efficient vehicles. The thing I find interesting is the small amount of hybrids - 2% of the market. (The handout photo is provided by the Honda Motor Company.)

I think this will go up over time.

Even though prices are down now - I believe the summer's super high prices may have caused many Americans to realize there is a sinking ship with regular gasoline vehicles.

There's still gonna be more push for more fuel-efficiency and greater diversity of energy resources - i.e. biodiesel, hydrogen, ethanol, and other renewable energy sources.

"Six gas-only vehicles made the top 10: manual and automatic versions of the Toyota Yaris, the manual version of the Honda Fit, the manual Toyota Corolla and manual versions of the Hyundai Accent and Kia Rio.

The government compiles the list based on information from manufacturers. Fuel economy estimates are determined by averaging numbers from a specific set of tests.

'Each year millions of Americans buy new cars, and by using fuel economy information, each consumer can make a more educated decision that will help conserve energy and save money,' said Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman.

Hybrids comprise about 2 percent of the U.S. sales market but they have benefited from a federal tax incentive meant to help consumers recover part of the $3,000-$4,000 premium for a hybrid."

All the best,
Al Speer

Running Water - More info on using Water for Power

Here's a bit more about the idea of getting energy from water.

Very interesting.

Anybody else know much about this. I've never heard that much about it until recently, when all of the energy costs around the world skyrocketed, causing people to scramble for newer lower cost energy alternatives.