Pros and cons list for alternative fuels?

Question

Pros and cons list for alternative fuels?

Answer 1

Solar - Works great but costly and not very good for areas  having night time and cloudy days. Also requires very large area to produce much power.

Wind - Works great but costly and doesn't work when wind not blowing above about 8-10 MPH. Also requires very large area to produce much power.

Nuclear - Works great. Proven source (France is 80% Nuclear). Works 24 hrs a day. Takes a small area. Only negative is it has the word nuclear in it, and some people are afraid of it.

Hydrogen - Not yet proven to be cost effective or safe.

Geo Thermal - Works well, but all areas do not have this option because not naturally available.

Gasahol - Takes a lot of energy to make, and uses up food supplies.

Biodiesel - Works, but not enough available to make a big difference.

Bottom Line - Nuclear is the only alternative that is proven and can produce the massive amount needed to make a real difference and maintain our way of life. To bad the "Environmentalists" killed it for us. If GW kills me, I blame the "Environmentalists" and the ignorant Media for believing them instead of engineers.

Answer 2

Ethanol: Pro: It is renewable. Pro: it can be used in most cars today. Con: ethanol derived from corn only yields about 1.3 gallons for each gallon put in, if it is derived from sugar i think the output is near 1.8. A lot of research is going into genetically engineered switch grass where the yield is much higher. Another con is that there is CO2 emissions, although they are much lower than traditional gasoline.

Hydrogen: Pro: No emissions.  Con: hydrogen needs to be kept at a very low temp in order to stay liquid which is a huge obstacle. Con: Hydrogen needs to be created with electricity, and unless all of that electricity comes from Solar/ Wind/ Hydro, you really can't consider hydrogen to be a clean alternative.

Bio Diesel:  Pro: currently uses vegetable oil that would otherwise be waist. Con: Doesn't work well in cold temperatures. Pro: regular diesel cars/ trucks can be easily converted to run on bio diesel.

Answer 3

Pros:

1. less greenhouse gas emissions

2. cleaner/less exhaust

Cons:

1. ethanol (a biofuel) requires a lot of fertilization (which contains harmful chemicals to water and microorganisms)

2. very few gas stations sell ethanol and other biofuels in the US

3. have terrible gas mileage when running on 100% gas (like an average of 14 miles per gallon)

Answer 4

What would be a con for an alternative source of energy?

As long as it were cleaner, who could argue?

As long as people aren't forced to invest in the technology, I'm all for it!

Answer 5

Why go thru all that trouble when this air driven car is planning to get out on the market in 2008.

Answer 6

Even thought some are great like Solar or wind power, some other are way right down stupid. For example Oil from Corn. This is why, you are using a lot of water and you are using FOOD to supply your car, this has put a really big tall on commodities like this (meaning like wheat, corn and soy). Not only it is using a supply of food but is also using precious water. Which in fact puts contrains in the water supply. Obviously the market will adjust and I believe this tipe of  "technology" macroeconomicaly speaking will disapear fast due to this factors.

Others are Hidrogen fuel cells that have helped tremendously but are very expensive to produce and are not yet produce in full scale, due to its price.

Answer 7

pros -cleaner,less emissions,more abundant supply,cheaper

cons-more expensive, big oil

read on article where inventor got patent to change water into hydrogen. hydrogen i believe is used on space shuttle. big oil would probably fight against it because of the money they make. we would have an endless supply of fuel, and where would their profits go.

Answer 8

fossil fuels are the alternative to traditional renewable energy sources (living within the limits of the environment).

the con is we are told to believe in unconstrained industrial growth on a finite planet or else economic and social disaster

(and when supply of fossil fuel can't meet the demand, probably in the next 10 years, how will we support a planet of 6-9bn humans aspiring to hollywood lifestyles?)

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