The key facts:

-It costs as little as 1p per mile to run a car on electricity compared with around 10p on petrol.

-Electric cars are EXTREMELY QUIET with ZERO tailpipe emissions.

-Electricity is most suited for use in city-based cars and vans with set journey patterns requiring limited range (up to 50 miles), though it has also been trialled in some urban buses.

-Electric vehicles can be fully recharged from any 13 amp socket in up to seven hours. Vehicles can be effectively part-charged when they are stopped for shorter breaks which can significantly increase range. Fast charge facilities are technically feasible but expensive.

-New generation electric-petrol hybrid vehicles offer significant emissions benefits without the range disadvantage traditionally associated with electric vehicles. The latest hybrid vehicles do not require external recharging and are capable of running up to 60 miles, or more, on a gallon of petrol.

-The extra cost of buying an electric car varies from zero to £5,000 (before any grant). In many cases, batteries are leased rather than purchased outright at a cost of £60 to £100 a month.

The Electric or Hybrid Option

-Electric vehicles produce no tailpipe emissions. Most life-cycle analyses (including electricity generation and transmission) also suggest they contribute less in terms of carbon dioxide; the main global warming gas.

The key facts:

-Fuel cells are catalytic devices which convert the energy stored in a fuel directly to electrical energy.

-A fuel cell provides the conditions for a catalytic energy release as opposed to combustion. This occurs through the use of an electrolyte which allows the passage of ions, but acts as a barrier to the chemical reactants.

-Fuel cells were devised in the 19th century and were used to provide on-board electrical energy and water for the Apollo spacecraft.

-Fuel cells are capable of high conversion efficiencies which compare very favourably to the thermal efficiency of petrol and diesel engines.

-Fuel cell vehicles are not yet commercially available but the New Vehicle Technology Fund may offer funding for innovative demonstration projects

-Fuel cell vehicles have similar or improved performance as compared to a vehicle with an internal combustion engine. They are not as range-limited as are most battery electric vehicles.

-Fuel cell vehicles can be either ‘pure’ or ‘hybrids’. The hybrid design incorporates the use of a battery for peak power loading. This also enables the vehicle to use regenerative braking which can recover up to 20% of the fuel energy utilised.

-ZeTek Power has a demonstration project involving a fuel cell taxi which has been operating in London.

-Six fuel cell buses have been operational in North America for over two years. Ballard Power Systems (Canadian market leaders) aimed to commercialise fuel cell bus engines by 2002.

-The New Electric Car (Necar) range of vehicles has been developed by DaimlerChrysler, Ford and Ballard.

What fuels can be used by a fuel cell vehicle?

-Fuel cells operate most efficiently if fuelled by pure hydrogen. However, in practice, hydrogen can be delivered to the fuel cell using several fuel routes and air is sufficient to provide the oxygen to the cell. The method for on-board fuel storage is another system consideration. Three fuels (and storage methods) are being actively considered by most fuel cell vehicle developers.

These are:

-Pure hydrogen fuel (stored on-board as a compressed gas). The hydrogen is delivered as required to a fuel cell to provide motive power via an electric-drive train.

-Methanol fuel (stored on-board as a liquid). The hydrogen is generated from the methanol using an on-board reformer as required to provide hydrogen for a fuel cell to provide motive power via an electric drive-train.

-Petrol fuel (very low sulphur formulation; stored on-board as a liquid). The hydrogen is generated from the petrol using an on-board reformer as required to provide hydrogen for a fuel cell to provide motive power via an electric-drive train.

The pure hydrogen option operates at the highest efficiency but requires the development of a new hydrogen infrastructure. The reformer options benefit from existing fuel infrastructures, but are less efficient and more costly than the pure hydrogen option.

Current vehicles available

-No PEM fuel cell vehicles are currently available. However, Ballard and partners have publicly announced bus and car engine launches for 2002 and 2004 respectively. In the UK, ZeTek (formerly Zevco) have developed an alkaline fuel cell taxi and park utility vehicle. This operates in Westminster and is supported by Westminster City Council, Air Products, Shell Hydrogen and TransportEnergy. ZeTek is currently engaging in an international scheme (ZeTek Approved Systems Integrator Programme, ZASIP) to encourage technical and commercial partners to participate in the business opportunity provided by ZeTek’s fuel cell technology.

Why Switch To Cleaner Fuels?

-A vehicle which runs on cleaner fuel produces fewer harmful emissions and can be cheaper to run than on petrol or diesel.

-Did you know that in 6,000 miles a car will produce roughly its own weight in CO2?

-Or that transport is responsible for about 25% of the UK’s output of CO2, the main gas implicated in global warming?

-Up to 24,000 early deaths per year result from poor air quality in Britain’s cities and there are a similar number of hospitalisations – almost wholly as a result of vehicle emissions.

-There are cleaner alternatives to traditional petrol and diesel engine vehicles. These include vehicles running on LPG, natural gas, electricity, fuel cells and Biofuels, as well as hybrid vehicles.

The key facts:

-A very cheap fuel due to the much lower fuel duty imposed by the Government. Using natural gas as a vehicle fuel can lead to significant running cost savings.

-Natural gas is abundant and delivered to most parts of the UK by a sophisticated network of pipelines thus reducing transport requirements to the point of use.

-To get sufficient volume of energy into a conventional size fuel tank requires that natural gas be compressed, or cooled to liquefy it.

-It has proved particularly popular as a fuel for trucks, buses and larger vehicles. The extra weight and cost of on-board fuel tanks makes conversion to natural gas normally more expensive than LPG for smaller vehicles.

-There are a limited number of public refuelling points for natural gas. Many fleets have chosen to install depot-based refuelling facilities.

-Refuelling options for natural gas range from cheap, slow-fill compressors which can refuel a vehicle overnight to high-tech stations which can refuel a vehicle in a similar time to petrol. Installing a larger refuelling station can be expensive which means the economics work best when 15 or more larger vehicles are involved to spread the cost.

-Natural gas is currently the cheapest of all the fossil-based fuels (including LPG) when fuel costs alone are considered. It costs under 6p per mile to run a smaller vehicle on natural gas (compared with 10p or more on petrol).

-Natural gas engines are far quieter than diesel engines making these vehicles suitable for overnight deliveries and in noise-sensitive locations.

-Most types of vehicle can be built, or converted, to run on natural gas. It is easier and cheaper to convert a vehicle with a petrol engine than one running on diesel.

-The cost of building a larger vehicle to run on natural gas starts from around £10,000. Smaller vehicles can be converted to run as bi-fuel from around £2,000.

What is Natural Gas?  

Natural gas is predominantly methane, mainly found in underground (or undersea) fields and often associated with oil. In Britain it comes mainly from large fields in the North Sea and is the same fuel as used by many people for cooking and heating in their homes. Current Vehicles Available   Natural gas vehicles can be set up to run  either as ‘Dedicated’ vehicles which have natural gas as their only fuel and are spark ignited – like petrol – or ‘Bi-fuel’ vehicles which have two separate fuel systems and can switch between petrol and natural gas at the flick of a switch. Bi-fuel vehicles are sometimes (confusingly) described as ‘dual-fuel’ vehicles. However, strictly speaking, these are vehicles that run on a varying mixture of two fuels, usually diesel and natural gas.   Dedicated vehicles will usually offer the best combination of emissions, performance and efficiency, though bi-fuel capability may be the most practical option where vehicles do not always return to their home depot for refuelling.   Some dedicated natural gas products are available, particularly amongst the heavier vehicle options.   In all cases, gas is stored on the vehicle in special fuel tanks; it is then piped to the engine via special high pressure pipes and introduced into the engine intake tract, controlled by a regulator.

The key facts:

-A very cheap fuel due to the significantly lower fuel duty imposed by the Government. A litre of LPG currently costs less than half the price of petrol or diesel on the forecourt.

-A litre of LPG allows a vehicle to travel around 80% of the of the distance it could travel on a litre of petrol.

-LPG refuelling points are being introduced all over the country. There were approximately 1295 in the UK as at 19/Dec/2003 – and the number is still increasing fast.

-Most types of vehicle can be built, or converted, to run on LPG. It is much easier and cheaper to convert a vehicle with a petrol engine than one running on diesel.

-LPG has proved particularly popular as a fuel for cars and vans, most of which are bi-fuel; they carry both petrol and LPG and can change from one to the other at the flick of a switch.

-LPG is sometimes marketed as ‘Autogas’.

The typical cost of converting a passenger car or light vehicle to run on LPG is around £1,500. More vehicles with an LPG option are now available direct from the manufacturers.

What is LPG?  

Liquefied petroleum gas is mainly comprised of propane. It is a by-product of oil refining and is also associated with natural gas (methane) fields. It is often used as a bottled gas for cooking and heating where there is no natural gas pipeline nearby. LPG vehicles can be set up to run either as ‘dedicated’ vehicles which have LPG as their only fuel and are spark ignited (like petrol), or ‘bi-fuel’ (sometimes known as ‘dual-fuel’) vehicles. These are vehicles with petrol engines converted so that they can operate on LPG or petrol. In all cases, gas is stored on the vehicle in special fuel tanks; it is then piped to the engine and introduced into the engine intake tract, controlled by a regulator.