Fuels of the Future

"The use of vegetable oils for engine fuels may seem insignificant today. But, such oils may become in course of time as important as petroleum products of the present time."

That quote may seem like it came out of a recent environmentalist summit at some prestigious research university, in the wake of rising oil prices and unrest in the Middle East. Ironically, Dr. Rudolf Diesel himself, who ran his prototype engine at the 1912 Paris World Exhibition on peanut oil, spoke those words more than 90 years ago. Likewise, the concerns about America's dependence on imported oil were voiced as early as 1948, showing that many of the energy-related issues staring us in the face today have been looming for 50 years or more. These issues that have been swept under the rug for so long have now become too big to ignore, and once obscure and forgotten research into alternative fuels has come to the forefront.

It's no secret that modern turbodiesels are the natural choice for fullsize truck enthusiasts that want to get some serious power and performance out of their rigs. But, could they also be the choice for those wanting to make an environmental statement? Although the image of custom diesel truck owners wearing tie-dye T-shirts and Birkenstocks may seem strange, in many ways this passionate group of enthusiasts may share some common ground with environmentalists.

Although the basic design of the diesel engine has been around for more than 100 years, it has only recently established itself as a high-tech, high-efficiency engine option. Though diesel engines are a popular option with heavy-duty pickups in the U.S., the overall market penetration still stands in the single-digits, around 3 to 4 percent among U.S. auto sales, compared to 30 to 40 percent or more in Europe.

The reasons the diesel hasn't been more widely accepted in the U.S. are threefold. In the early to mid-'80s, just in the wake of the fuel crisis, diesel emissions were unregulated, resulting in smoky, smelly exhaust, and little, if any, incentive to improve cleanliness of the engines. At the same time, the diesel engines hastily rushed to market in the early '80s by some manufacturers quickly became notorious for their poor reliability, turning tens of thousands of Americans off to the notion of owning a diesel ever again. Thirdly, and most pertinent to today, the regulatory environment for diesels in the United States has been a constantly evolving landscape, with the California Air Resources Board and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's ever-tightening standards and refusal to compromise on particulate or NOx standards, long the Achille's heel of diesels.

But, all hope is not lost for diesels in the U.S. Thanks to recent attention being paid as much to the fuel going into the engines as the emissions coming out, diesels have the potential to become a more practical and economical solution in the next several years than even hybrids or fuel cells. Here, we'll look at several alternative diesel fuel technologies on the horizon. Some of which you can pull up to a pump and fill your tank with today, and others that you may be seeing within the next few years.