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Wednesday, 25 June 2008 08:00 |
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In Europe and the rest of the world Diesel powered cars are the norm, where as in the United States most of our vehicles are gasoline powered. Generally Diesel is a much better for the environment vehicle as the exhaust is not a toxic to humans. Diesels put out CO2, which can be used by trees and plant life, while gasoline engines put out carbon monoxide, which can be much worse and even more dangerous to our human bio systems. Honda already makes trucks with diesel engines, but as of yet have not built cars for the United States, which use diesel fuel. Imagine running bio-diesel fuel in your personal Honda Car? Well, Honda engineers already have and are almost ready to release them to the consumer market and you will soon be seeing them in Honda Auto Dealerships across the nation. There are many diesel Honda cars in Europe in fact they do maintain a decent market share there now. The Diesel Honda cars spew out just a little too much soot for the US emissions rules of the Air Quality Management Districts and EPA. These Honda vehicles get excellent fuel mileage, which will make owners very happy and save them lots of money, even though currently Diesel Fuel prices often run slightly higher than the gasoline prices in the US. These diesel vehicles will most likely be considered for the larger of the Honda Vehicles, including their new pick-up, SUVs and six cylinder Honda Accords, while they are focusing on the Hybrids for the smaller lighter weight cars. We shall see if this strategy works well for Honda, it should. Think on this. "Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/ |
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Monday, 12 May 2008 19:01 |
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What kind of difference can the use biodiesel make when it comes
to changing the world for the better? Perhaps the biggest impact
of the use of biodiesel fuel instead of just plain diesel is on
the human health and the environment.
One of the biggest differences that biodiesel make is with
regards to smog. Using biodiesel actually reduces smog. Both
unburned hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides in diesel fuel account
for most of the particulates in air pollution. When you use
biodiesel product or homemade biodiesel there is a substantial
reduction of unburned hydrocarbons and if you are using a blend
that is right for your machine. Tests that have been conducted
according to EPA regulations have shown that the hydrocarbon
exhaust emissions that biodiesel are half that of that measured
for diesel fuel.
Can biodiesel make more energy? Unlike the burning of fossil
fuels, the burning biodiesel fuels actually gives back more
energy to the environment that it takes. Lifecycle studies of
biodiesel production show that for every unit of fossil energy
it takes to manufacture fossil fuel, 3.2 units of energy are
gained. This kind of lifecycle study examines the impact during
all phases of biodiesel production including its transportation,
production and distribution to the biodiesel fuel customer.
Can biodiesel make a difference when it comes to reducing the
effects of global warming? The answer is yes. The overall
lifecycle emissions of carbon dioxide (a major greenhouse gas)
from biodiesel are 78% lower than the overall carbon dioxide
emissions from petroleum diesel fuel!
Can biodiesel make a difference when it comes to reducing acid
rain? Once again the answer is very positive. The overall
lifecycle emissions of sulfur oxides (major components of acid
rain) from biodiesel are 8% lower than overall sulfur oxides
emissions from regular diesel fuel. It"s a start.
Can biodiesel make a difference when it comes to waste water?
The overall lifecycle production of waste water from biodiesel
production is 79.0% lower than overall production of wastewater
from diesel fuel. To put it another way, petroleum diesel makes
roughly five times as much wastewater flow than biodiesel can
make.
Can biodiesel make a difference when it comes to lung cancer and
asthma? Scientific research confirms that biodiesel exhaust is
less harmful to humans then diesel fuel exhaust because lacks
aromatic compounds. The purer the biodiesel fuel is the less
likely it is to create the cancer causing compounds polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons. Most of the poisonous compounds common to
diesel exhaust are reduced by 75 to 85 percent by using
biodiesel fuel. Biodiesel is also easier on the lung because it
reduces the emission of the types of particulate matter that
cause asthma and other lung disorders by about 47 percent.
Additionally biodiesel make less soot. Studies have shown that
biodiesel reduces the total amount of particulate matter soot in
bus tailpipe exhaust by 83.6%. Soot is the heavy black smoke
portion of the petroleum diesel fuel exhaust that consists of
100% carbon. It has been suggested that diesel soot produces
cancer.
How can you use biodiesel to make a difference? Burning just a
2% biodiesel blend in on-road vehicle that usually takes diesel
fuel will curtail all kinds of harmful emissions. Annually this
one action has the potential to reduce poisonous carbon monoxide
emissions by more than 35 million pounds, reduce ozone forming
hydrocarbon emissions by almost 4 million pounds, reduce
hazardous diesel particulate emissions by almost 3 million
pounds and reduce acid rain-causing sulfur dioxide emissions by
more than 3 million pounds. That"s a big difference!
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Monday, 12 May 2008 18:00 |
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There are few engine configurations that promise increased fuel
economy and power. Fewer yet that offer these in addition to
bulletproof reliability. Today, our friends across the ocean are
enjoying the fruits of the diesel technology revolution. Is
there room for diesel passenger cars in North America?
Fool me once, shame on you.
Diesels have a colorful history here in North America. In the
1980"s General Motors "modified" their 350ci gasoline V8 to run
on diesel fuel. The result? Not good. These engines offered
better fuel efficiency but little else. They were terribly slow,
and as reliable as your best friend after a hard night of
drinking. That is to say, not very.
Fool me twice, shame on me.
Mercedes-Benz had better luck in the 1980"s offering a slew of
vehicles available with diesel engines. These workhorses offered
unsurpassed durability (capable of running in excess of 500,000
miles) but they were rough, noisy, and had a smoking habit.
Volkswagen also offered diesels but they too had a penchant for
spewing blue smoke from their tail pipe.
The Next Generation.
Throughout the 1990"s, Benz and Volkswagen continued to offer
diesel cars here in North America. Each generation became
cleaner, smoother, and more powerful than the last. But overall,
they were a tough sell as they still lacked the horsepower
(although they made up for it in torque) that many were looking
for.
Better, Faster, Stronger.
Today Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar, Volkswagen and many more
manufacturers are offering diesels to many markets around the
world. Forget everything you remember about diesel here in North
America. These new engines benefit from hundreds of
technological innovations. Many diesels in Europe offer better
acceleration than their gasoline counter parts. BMW"s 120d has
163bhp, goes 0-60mph in 7.6seconds, and achieves 49.6mpg in city
and highway driving combined. Mercedes-Benz offers the C320 CDI
SE that has 224hp, and over 360 lb-ft of torque. We get this
engine in the larger E-class but it really shines in the C-class
as it is available with a 6-speed manual transmission. The C320
CDI SE gets just under 48mpg on the highway and accelerates to
60mph in well under 7 seconds. Do you know of a gasoline engine
in North America that can offer this blend of fuel economy and
performance? I sure don"t.
Why have they not caught on here?
One word. Sulfur. We have too much sulfur in our diesel here in
North America. This cheap grade of diesel will run havoc on the
precise, sophisticated diesels offered overseas and causes
increased emissions. But all is not lost. As of June 2006,
refiners will start producing what is known as ultra low sulfur
diesel fuel. This will reduce the sulfur content from 500ppm to
15ppm. This should reach the pumps by September. So the question
is, will we ever get to enjoy this renaissance in diesel
technology? Could we be driving a car that has tire melting
torque and the fuel efficiency that even a member of Green Peace
could love? For that answer we"ll have to wait and see.
More automotive articles of interest
New and used car buying tips
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