Dhanapal 1

Kavin Dhanapal
Hour 3
English 10
Ms. Meyer
May 28th, 2019

Alternatively Changing the Gasoline Standard

The phrase “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it“ has been synonymous with any piece of technology that

aims to challenge an already set standard. People don’t want change, especially when the current product

seemingly works just fine. There is nearly no better example of this than in the automotive industry where

gasoline has been the standard, ever since cars became a household amenity. This might make it seem as

though gasoline does not suffer from any problems, which is where alternative fuels come in. Alternative

fuels consist of fuel technologies like electricity and hydrogen, which aim to overthrow gasoline in the

coming years. They offer many benefits, while also presenting some challenges of their own. Gasoline,

the current automotive standard, is about to take a second seat to the emerging but flawed alternative fuel

technologies.

Alternative fuels offer options to finally offset the domination of gasoline. The most dominant

and most promising of these alternative fuels come in the form of electricity. “While it’s too early to say

that with certainty—and gasoline-powered vehicles are expected to make up a significant portion of the

mix for decades—battery-electric vehicles are looking like the clear winners for at least a number of years

ahead”(Car and Driver). Electric vehicles, while still behind gasoline powered vehicles in market share,

are promised to overtake gasoline in the not so distant future. Nearly all alternatively fueled vehicles rely

on one common thing, an electric motor. They differ in the way they power that electric motor. “What

makes it different from a battery-electric vehicle (or BEV) is where the electricity comes from. Instead of

a battery, a hydrogen fuel cell car has, well, a hydrogen fuel cell” (Christopher Lampton). Battery

powered vehicles work by powering their electric motors with electricity, causing them to move.

Hydrogen vehicles have a hydrogen fuel cell at its core, which strips hydrogen’s electrons to power its

motors. Fully electric vehicles and hydrogen powered vehicles are setting a new standard to combat
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gasoline in the automotive industry.

Alternatively fueled vehicles have many benefits compared to its gasoline counterparts. For

starters, they produce zero emissions, at least while driving. “The great thing – and the green thing –

about both electric cars and hydrogen fuel cell cars is that they don't produce any pollution at the tailpipe”

(Christopher Lampton). Electric motors don’t require a noisy exhaust, a trait that is currently exclusive to

fully electric vehicles. In hydrogen vehicles, the only form of an exhaust is the excess hydrogen

combining with surrounding oxygen, which produces water and steam. This makes it so that the vehicle

itself produces zero harmful emissions. Not only are electric cars efficient, they’re also very quick.

“Tesla's Model S P100D recently broke the Motor Trend's all-time world record for fastest acceleration of

a production car by going 0 to 97 kph in just 2.28 seconds” (Interesting Engineering). While this

characteristic encompasses only fully electric vehicles, the fact that they accelerate much faster than a

gasoline powered car still stands. This is due to the fact that electricity takes much less time to power a

motor than gasoline does to ignite. Electricity is also already stored in the vehicles ready for use, while

gasoline needs a spark to get started. That, in addition to the low center of gravity attribute that nearly all

electric vehicles exhibit, help them to be some of the quickest cars in production. Gasoline cars are less

efficient while also being sluggish compared to alternatively fueled vehicles.

While alternatively fueled vehicles are good in their own right, sometimes regular old gasoline

might still be the better option. For all that alternatively fueled vehicles can do with acceleration, they fall

behind on one key category: range. “Another downside is what’s known as ‘range anxiety’ – driver's’ fear

of running out of power before they’ve reached a charging point” (Andy Goodwin). Both hydrogen and

fully electric vehicles suffer from not having as many charging stations as traditional gasoline. This

causes problems when they also don’t go as far on a charge as gasoline cars do on a refuel. Even in

roadside assistance cases, gasoline as a fuel is easier to carry when compared to batteries or hydrogen.

Another con is that the overall efficiency of an alternatively fueled vehicle depends on where it gets its

fuel from. “While neither type of car produces pollution at the tailpipe, they both have the potential to

produce pollution when their ‘fuel’ is created” (Christopher Lampton). There are many different ways to
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derive electricity. Wind, water, solar, and other similar methods used to derive electricity are known to be

green. Burning fossil fuels and using nuclear power plants to attain electricity are methods that cause

pollution. Considering the fact that an electric vehicle needs to source its electricity from somewhere, that

place might not be as green as the car itself. The same goes for hydrogen. Hydrogen is derived from a

process known as electrolysis, or passing electricity through water. The electricity from that process

comes from the same place as the electricity used in electric vehicles. These processes, ironically, might

release the same carbon dioxide that these cars are striving to eliminate. For all that alternatively fueled

vehicles can do, they do fall behind traditional gasoline powered vehicles in a few key areas.

Alternative fuels are emerging into the automotive world, finally offering a substitute to the age-

old standard of gasoline, despite their shortcomings. They aim to protect the environment while also

providing their own performance improvements. They have the potential to offer many benefits, albeit

with their own complications. The phrase “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” might still hold true to this day,

but gasoline cars are definitely broken, and by definition, they need to be fixed.

Work Cited

Lampton, Christopher. “Electric Cars vs. Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cars.” HowStuffWorks, 6 Dec.

2011, auto.howstuffworks.com/electric-cars-vs-hydrogen-fuel-cell-cars.htm.

“Tesla Smashes Acceleration Record of Production Cars.” Interesting Engineering, 12 Mar.

2018, interestingengineering.com/tesla-smashes-acceleration-record-production-cars.

“What Will Replace Gasoline-Electricity or Hydrogen?” Car and Driver, 8 Mar. 2019,

www.caranddriver.com/news/a15345922/what-will-replace-gasoline-electricity-or-

hydrogen/.
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