But if the “Green New Deal” gains any sort of traction, we’ll be seeing a lot more of it:
He’s Creating a New Fuel Out of Thin Air — for 85 Cents per Gallon
The fuel in question is ammonia. Which is fine, I guess (quite a number of conventional vehicles have been modified to run on it), except it has a few problems:
1: It is toxic.
2: Its boiling point is low… lower than most Polar Vortex nights. So it will either need to be stored under pressure or at soft cryogen temperatures. Either way, it will have to be a spherical or cylindrical tank.
3: Internal combustion engines aren’t 100% efficient at combustion. So the fumes will reek of toxic ammonia.
4: Additionally, nitrogen oxides – N2O and NO2 – will be produced. NO2 is not only toxic, it’s a major component of smog.
5: The energy density of liquid ammonia is poor, something like 1/3 that of hydrocarbons. So for that 85 cents, you’ll go a third as far. Given that the ammonia tank isn’t the same shape as your modified cars original gas tank, you’re likely carrying a notably smaller fuel load. You might need to fuel up four or five times as often.
6: And then the government starts adding on taxes to the ammonia….