An overview of alternative fuel vehicles. Includes chapters on: regulations and requirements in the U.S. and California; electric vehicles; ethanol-powered/flexible fuel vehicles; methanol-powered/flexible fuel vehicles; natural gas -powered vehicles; propane/LPG-powered vehicles; heavy-duty vehicles and engines; other alternative and clean fuels; locations of alternative fuel facilities; and the future of alternative fuel research. Glossary and bibliography. Tables, contact lists and maps.

Focusing on a critical aspect of the future clean energy system - renewable fuels - this book will be your complete guide on how these fuels are manufactured, the considerations associated with utilising them, and their real-world applications. Written by experts across the field, the book presents many professional perspectives, providing an in-depth understanding of this crucial topic. Clearly explained and organised into four key parts, this book explores the technical aspects written in an accessible way. First, it discusses the dominant energy conversion approaches and the impact that fuel properties have on system operability. Part II outlines the chemical carrier options available for these conversion devices, including gaseous, liquid, and solid fuels. In the third part, it describes the physics and chemistry of combustion, revealing the issues associated with utilizing these fuels. Finally, Part IV presents real-world case studies, demonstrating the successful pathways towards a net-zero carbon future.

MARK FINKELSTEIN National Renewable Energy Laboratory BRIAN H. DAVISON Oak Ridge National Laboratory The proceedings of the 19th symposium on Biotechnologyfor Fuels and Chemicals, held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, May 4-8, 1997, had over 200 attendees. This meeting continues to provide a unique forum for the presentation of new applications and recent research advances in the production of fuels and chemicals through biotech nology. The utilization of renewable resources, and in particular cellulosic biomass, has broad implications in today's world of green house gases, global warming, ozone layers, climate change, energy sustainability, and carbon emissions. It also has relevance to the chemical industry's continuing need to both lower current chemi cal production costs and produce novel chemicals. Biotechnology and bioprocessing are now making it possible to convert this bio mass to fuels and chemicals in a commercially attractive fashion. The 19th Symposium captures a wide range of technical topics from an academic, industrial, or government perspective. A vari ety of biomass feedstocks are discussed in Session 1, along with several updated and innovative pretreatment processing approaches. The ability to turn lignocellulosic materials into simple sugars offers great opportunities to generate cost-effective feed stocks to be used in biotechnological processes for the production of fuels and chemicals. Through the advent of genetic engineering, the development of a series of exciting new biocatalysts and microbes were presented in Session 2.

In recent years, advances in biological science and technology have outpaced policymakers' attempts to deal with them. Current Controversies in the Biological Sciences examines the ways in which the federal government uses scientific information in reaching policy decisions, providing case studies of the interactions between science and government on different biomedical, biological, and environmental issues. These case studies document a broad range of complex issues in science policy—from the Human Genome Project to tobacco regulation—and provide an accessible overview of both the science behind the issues and the policy-making process. The cases illustrate the different ways in which science and politics intersect in policy decisions, as well as the different forms policy itself may take—including not only regulatory action but the lack of regulation. Among the topics examined are public and private research funding, as seen in gene patenting; reluctance to regulate even when a product has been proven unhealthy, as in the case of tobacco; a comparison of U.S. and international policy responses to genetically modified organisms; and the competing interests at play in air pollution policy. Each chapter includes shorter side essays on related topics (for example, essays on issues raised by the SARS epidemic accompany the detailed case study of the public health response to the anthrax-laced mail received in the weeks after 9/11). This clear and readable introduction to controversial issues in the biological sciences will be a valuable resource for students of science policy and bioethics and for professionals in industry, government, and nongovernmental organizations who need background on emerging issues in the biological sciences.