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Want to buy a car that runs on water? Well, it might have sounded strange a few years back, but not anymore. To address the growing menace of air pollution, scientists have actually developed cars that use 100% water as fuel. And what’s more, these cars could potentially be the vehicles of the future, at a time when gasoline and diesel-powered cars will be rendered obsolete and relegated to museums.
Cars running on alternative sources of energy are the latest craze in the world of automobiles. In fact, scientists have developed cars that run not only on water but also on other non-conventional sources of energy such as electricity, solar power, bio-diesel, ethanol and LPG. This is a necessity considering the dwindling reserves of fossil fuels and rising pollution levels in the world. In this article, we take a look at the various advantages and disadvantages of cars powered by alternative energy sources.
To date, electricity is the most popular form of alternative energy used to power cars. Cars like the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight can use both electricity and gasoline. These cars, labeled as hybrids, have an electric motor in addition to the regular motor, giving the rider a choice of power source. Compared to other cars, hybrids are more eco-friendly, and also cheaper to run. Hybrid electric vehicles have batteries that can be charged using a standard electrical plug at home.
The use of LPG and CNG has also been promoted by various governments in recent years to cut down on the emission of greenhouse gases. Cars powered by CNG are highly fuel-efficient, and produce very low levels of emissions. It is possible to convert a conventional petrol engine to CNG compatible using a simple hybrid conversion kit, thus giving petrol car owners a chance to cut down on emission levels.
Apart from these, a lot of research has been done in recent years in developing cars that run on solar energy and bio-diesel. While the former typically harvest energy from the Sun using solar panels on their bodies, the latter use fuel derived from natural, renewable sources of energy such as plants and vegetable oils. The Astrolab, designed by French transportation futurist Venturi, is the world’s first commercially available solar-powered car. Solar powered cars have zero-emission levels and are ideal vehicles for a pollution-free world. However, solar car development is still in its infancy and we don’t have a solar-powered heavy vehicle on the roads yet. Cars that run on biofuels, on the other hand, are easier to manufacture, but their popularity has been checked due to the limited availability of biofuels.
Water-powered cars are also one of the possible solutions that scientists have come up with to meet the challenges of rising air-pollution. The car uses the technology of electrolysis to split water into oxygen and hydrogen, thus generating the necessary power in the process. Although a completely pollution-free vehicle, making a water-powered car is expensive, and research is still ongoing to make the car commercially viable.
What is promising, however, is that hybrid cars have generated tremendous interest among people around the world. With dwindling oil reserves and rising fuel prices, vigorous research and development is being done to develop automobiles that run on alternative forms of energy. The increase in air pollution and the greenhouse effect have also contributed to the search for a non-polluting, cost-effective car. In fact, we are not far from the day when an ideal green car will be a reality for consumers. Hybrid cars are truly the vehicles of tomorrow and they are here to stay.
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