Conscious Choice: A Drive into the Future

July 1999

A Drive into the Future

by James Faber

Americans have a love affair with cars. We clean and polish them, decorate them with fancy accessories and graduation tassels, and even give them names. From the original Model T to today’s sport utility vehicles, the automobile has evolved and changed to keep up with the times, yet the internal combustion engine has remained basically the same since its invention in 1887. Unfortunately, automobiles are one of the greatest contributors to climate change through emission of heat-trapping gases. According to Greenpeace statistics, 500 million cars world-wide emit four billion tons of carbon dioxide per year, with the U.S. accounting for a quarter of global CO2 emissions.

It’s probably a pretty safe bet that the automobile will still be around for a while, although technology seems to be steering cars in a whole new direction. The growing concerns over U.S. oil dependency, air quality, and climate change have led auto manufacturers to the development of alternative fuel vehicles.

In the past, "alternative fuel" usually meant electric, and such vehicles were notorious for being plagued with problems — the distance they were able to travel on a single battery charge, the weight of their batteries, fuel costs and availability — but there are some promising new technologies. Currently there are three basic types of alternative fuel vehicles, all with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Battery Power

The concept of using batteries to power an automobile is not a novel idea, but lately, there have been advances in the technology to make it more practical.

A vehicle powered by traditional batteries could only travel about 90 miles on a charge, but a new patented battery by 76-year-old inventor Stanford Ovshinsky can almost double the mileage. Ovshinsky also has been able to bring the cost of the batteries down by 40 percent in the last two years; he says that with a commitment for mass quantities from automakers, electric cars would be as cheap as those using gasoline.

Everyone’s Doing It

Nissan recently introduced its Altra EV (Electric Vehicle), the first production EV in the U.S. to use Lithium-ion (LY-ion) batteries. LY-ion batteries are energy-efficient, lightweight, and provide a driving range of 80 to 100 miles. They were jointly developed by Nissan and Sony Corporation, and are the same type used in notebook computers and some video cameras.

"The Altra EV is a significant step forward in bringing an emissions-free transportation solution to American consumers," said Mike Seergy, vice president and general manager of Nissan Division. "It is a sophisticated real-world alternative for environmentally conscious consumers."

The Nissan Altra EV will be available to a select number of demonstration fleet users in California in 1999, with consumer availability planned for 2000.

The General Motors electric vehicle is the EV1. The car features advanced Nickel-Metal-Hydride (NiMH) batteries that enable it to travel 75-140 miles on a charge, with 0-60 acceleration in nine seconds. It also features a regenerative braking system which could result in a 15 to 20 percent increase in range potential. According to G.M., there are 97 percent fewer emissions with the EV1 than a conventional gasoline engine, including the electricity-generating emissions from the power plant.

The EV1 has been on the market for a couple of years and is also distributed by Saturn, but currently, it’s only available in California and Arizona.

Ford Motor Company decided to take a different approach to the electric vehicle. Instead of designing an entirely new car, they took the Ford Ranger — their best-selling compact truck — and made an electric model. The Ranger EV incorporates the same features as the gasoline version, but is powered with either Lead Acid or NiMH batteries. The NiMH model can travel 100 miles on a charge.

"We put tremendous resources into building alternative fuel vehicles, leading the automotive industry in putting recycled materials back into our cars and trucks, and in placing environmental systems in our manufacturing plants," said Jim Schroer, Ford’s executive director of Marketing Strategy and Brand Management.

In addition to the Ranger EV, Ford also supplies automobiles for fleets powered by compressed natural gas, propane, or ethanol. Ford alternative fuel vehicles are currently available throughout the U.S. and Canada, but only to fleet, retail outlet, and government customers.

On a similar note, Toyota recently introduced the RAV4 EV, an electric vehicle powered by a NiMH battery, which provides a driving range of 126 miles on a charge and a top speed of 78 mph. Toyota also produces a model of the Camry that uses compressed natural gas. Both vehicles recently became available for fleet use in the U.S.

Honda’s electric vehicle, the EV Plus, is the first production electric vehicle to use the NiMH battery technology, providing a city driving range of 125 miles. The car is equipped with an on-board charger capable of recharging overnight at 110 or 120 volts. It has regenerative braking to recharge the battery during braking and coasting.

For fleet use, Honda also produces a natural-gas-powered Civic GX, which has been certified by the U.S. EPA as the cleanest internal combustion engine ever tested. Its other Civics and its Accords meet California’s Low Emission Vehicle (LEV) standard. (California has the strictest emissions laws in the U.S.) Honda’s LEV Civics and Accords are now available in all 50 states, Europe, and Asia.

The Honda EV Plus has been on the consumer market in California and New York since 1998, but recently the American Honda Motor Company decided to stop producing battery-powered electric cars. In fact, the company has declared there is no future in producing and marketing completely electric vehicles. According to the Los Angeles Times, fewer than 2,400 battery electric cars and truck have been sold or leased in the U.S. over the past three years — most of which were in California. Instead, Honda will focus on hybrid and fuel cell vehicles.

Hybrids

Today’s hybrid automobiles still use internal combustion engines, but in combination with battery power. Hybrid vehicles mainly run off their batteries, but use the gas power for acceleration and long-distance driving. The outcome is better gas mileage and less pollution — although hybrids still produce some emissions.

Honda does have a hybrid vehicle in the works. The Honda VV, set for production later this year, boasts a city/highway average fuel economy of more than 70 MPG, and meets California’s LEV standard.

Honda’s hybrid contains a three-cylinder engine with the Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) system. The IMA system employs an ultra-efficient gasoline engine as its main power source under all driving conditions. The battery-operated electric motor provides additional power during acceleration to increase the engine’s performance and efficiency.

Toyota has already driven down this road. The company began working on alternative fuels and fuel efficiency in the early‘60s, and in 1997 introduced the world’s first mass-produced hybrid vehicle.

The Toyota Prius uses a clean-burning, high-efficiency 1.5-liter gasoline engine to provide the main power, with additional power supplied by an electric motor and an electric generator.

During deceleration or braking, the motor functions as a generator to recharge the batteries, so they never need to be recharged from an external source. The engine also shuts down, creating zero exhaust emissions and using no fuel. The battery is regulated to maintain a constant charge, so when the charge is low, the electric generator will route power in order to charge the battery.

The results are nearly double the fuel efficiency of conventional gasoline engine vehicles — 66 miles per gallon, and over 850 miles on one 13.2 gallon tank of gas. Carbon dioxide emissions are reduced by 50 percent. Currently, the Prius is available only in Japan, but Toyota promises a version built specially for the U.S. in the near future.

Fuel Cells

As promising as batteries and hybrid systems may be, fuel cells are probably the most encouraging technology for eventually replacing the internal combustion engine. The fuel cell was invented in 1839 by British scientist Sir William Grove; it was used by NASA to power the Gemini and Apollo spacecrafts in the‘60s.

A fuel cell basically operates like a battery, but never needs recharging. It consists of two electrodes between an electrolyte. When oxygen passes over one electrode and hydrogen over the other, electricity, water, and heat are created. According to Breakthrough Technologies/Fuel Cells 2000, a nonprofit group dedicated to the commercialization of fuel cell technologies, there are different types of fuel cells each best suited for different applications.

Phosphoric Acid fuel cells are the most commercially developed type of fuel cell, and are already being used in hospitals, hotels, schools, and airports. These fuel cells generate electricity at more than 40 percent efficiency, compared to 30 percent for the most efficient internal combustion engines. Canadian-based company H Power Enterprises recently announced a commercially available backup power system featuring a hydrogen fuel cell that will be marketed for residential use.

Proton exchange membrane fuel cells are the most suited for automobiles. They operate at relatively low temperatures, have high power density, and can quickly vary their output to meet shifts in power demand.

"What is proposed here is a fundamental shift in vehicle technology, and more broadly, in the way we think about energy," said Robert Rose, executive director of Fuel Cells 2000. "If fuel cells emerge as the future technology of choice, these years will be revered by historians as the beginning of a better future."

Advantages and Disadvantages

While forty-percent efficiency doesn’t sound so impressive at first, fuel cells currently offer the cleanest alternative to the internal combustion engine. Fuel cell vehicles running on hydrogen from a renewable source, like wind, solar, or biomass, will produce zero emissions. Fuel cell vehicles can also utilize natural gas, methanol, or gasoline through a fuel reformer, which can extract the hydrogen from these substances to produce near-zero emissions.

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, if ten percent of U.S. autos were powered by fuel cells, 60 million tons of carbon dioxide would be eliminated and air pollution would be cut by one million tons per year.

The biggest hurdle for fuel cells is cost. Some auto industry experts estimate it will be decades before fuel cell cars become affordable, although many of the automakers have already begun to invest big dollars in fuel cell technologies.

But the most basic problem is in filling up. Due to a lack of distribution systems for hydrogen, there is currently no way to refuel a fuel cell vehicle. One solution may be the use of a fuel reformer onboard fuel cell vehicles to convert methanol to hydrogen. This would still produce pollution, but less than gasoline.

The Future

Despite these bugs in the system, the major automakers have become interested in fuel cell technology. Ballard Power Systems, a Vancouver-based company, has been working on fuel cells since 1983. In 1997, Ballard and Daimler-Benz developed a fuel cell bus that was used by the Chicago CTA in a test program.

Recently, DaimlerChrysler and Ford invested millions of dollars to purchase 35 percent of Ballard. They hope to market a fuel cell auto by 2004.

"Daimler-Benz changed the face of the fuel cell industry by being bold in its research and development strategy, and by its willingness to commit enough money to give fuel cells a chance," said Rose. "Daimler’s success impressed and emboldened the entire auto industry. Now several companies are aiming at commercial-ready technologies within five years or so."

Toyota and GM have announced a five-year collaboration in part to develop fuel cell vehicles. Nissan and Suzuki are working as partners to develop a methanol fuel cell vehicle prototype by 2003. Volkswagen and Volvo have announced a joint fuel cell project. Mazda, Honda, and Renault all have fuel cell vehicles in the works as well.

As a consumer, you can’t just go out and buy an alternative fuel vehicle yet, unless you live in California or Arizona. But change, if it is coming, may be in our hands. Like any other business, the automobile industry is poised between innovation and demand. So far, the response to alternative fuel engines has been weak. As interest grows, however, so will our options.

Resources

Breakthrough Technologies Institute/Fuel Cells 2000

Greenpeace

Toyota

General Motors

Ford Motor Company

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