Kirk Bouley: Renewable Energy
There has been a lot of talk in the news lately about “renewable energy sources”. One of the biggest potential markets for a shift in energy reliance is that of the consumer vehicle market. One of the first steps that could be very easily made is a wider variety of diesel vehicles on the US market. Not only can a well-maintained diesel engine put out fewer harmful emissions than a gasoline of similar size, it can get double the fuel economy. Not only are diesel engines naturally more efficient, they can be easily altered to run on completely renewable fuels. One of the most plentiful sources of clean fuel is waste vegetable oil that when burned releases zero emissions. The military has been producing trucks since the 60’s that would run perfectly well on gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, kerosene, vegetable oil, and even alcohol. The military has been using alternate fuel sources for close to fifty years and I find it hard to believe that this technology has made the jump into the civilian market. I wonder if the major oil companies had anything to do with that?
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