Renewable Fuels for Transportation

Renewable Fuels for Transportation
By: Nicole Taschler

Moravian College

Bethlehem, PA

Adviser: Dr. Javad Tavakoli
Lafayette College
Easton, PA

Transportation vehicles in the United States consumed over 6.87 billion barrels of oil in 2011. This counts for about 22% of total world petroleum consumption. This has created dependency on a non-renewable energy supply from sources which may not be politically secure. Any attempt to change such trend would be economically and politically beneficial.  This poster presents a general view of renewable fuel options that can be used in transportation. In particular, the poster will discuss production of biodiesel from algae, ethanol from biomass (corn and sugarcane), hydrogen from natural gas and via electrolysis, and mechanics of fuel cell operation. The poster briefly addresses pros and cons of each technology.