![]() ![]() And for enthusiasts it offers hope that we can continue to use cars with internal combustion engines long after sales of new ICE cars have been banned. Even if volumes of carbon-neutral fuels are still ramping up, they are completely compatible with current fossil fuels and can be added to reduce the CO2 emissions, helping achieve climate change objectives. ‘These legacy vehicles will also have their part to play in cutting CO2 emissions,’ it says. It points out that around half the cars that will be on the road in 2030 have already been sold, most with petrol or diesel engines. One of the companies developing carbon-neutral synthetic fuels is Bosch. This is why developments in carbon-neutral synthetic fuels could be so valuable, and the benefits could be enjoyed by petrol, diesel and hybrid cars too. ![]() For instance, according to Airbus, even with batteries 30 times more energy dense, an electric-powered A320 would only be able to fly for a fifth of the range of the current jet-engined A320 while carrying half its payload.Īviation, long-distance shipping and road haulage aren’t going to go away, and even with improved fuel efficiencies they will still burn fossil fuels and generate CO2. The fundamental issue is that the energy density of current battery technology is poor compared to the liquid fuels currently used – diesel, bunker fuel and jet fuel – and would require such a volume and mass of batteries that they would be infeasible. These are heavy load and long distance: container shipping, long-haul aircraft and long-distance road transport. However, despite all the virtues, the unavoidable truth is that some forms of transport do not suit electrification. There is some argument over how ‘clean’ EVs are over their lifetime, though, including the impacts of mining the materials to create their batteries. Even if the electricity EVs use comes from fossil-fuel power stations, their effective CO2 emissions are still usefully lower. ![]() The rise of EVs (Electric Vehicles) is seemingly irresistible, partly because of their efficient use of energy, which is far superior to ICE (Internal Combustion Engine) alternatives and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles too. Will we have the infrastructure to support this rapid and large shift to electric cars? Can the car industry supply them? Will we have the required charge points and the capacity to power them, and will this electricity come from carbon-neutral, renewable sources – wind, solar, nuclear – rather than from power stations burning fossil fuels such as coal and gas? Could carbon-neutral synthetic fuels save the internal combustion engine and safeguard the future of the cars we love? ![]()
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