Question for the Chemistry nerd in all of us- What’s CH3-OH?
Give Up? That’s methanol which so happens to take on the form of liquid at room temperature. The creation process pretty closely mimics current efforts of hydrogen-fuel production with the addition of carbon monoxide. This simple addition results in one giant benefit over hydrogen ambitions: liquidity.
Whereas hydrogen, in gas form, would require a near-total retooling of the way we fuel our vehicles, methanol could be transported, stored, and pumped just like good old gasoline.
Like most alternative fuel sources, there are some pros and cons to methanol burning. Let’s look at the good news first, shall we? With a naturally higher octane rating, flex fuel applications could result in higher power output. This also means higher knock resistance, and slower heat release (lower engine temps). Best of all because its not as combustible as gasoline, vehicle related deaths, injuries, and destruction related to ruptures of the fuel system would greatly decrease.
Now for the inevitable bad news: It’s highly corrosive and would likely damage current engine material internals, in additionally the stuff is toxic (no surprise there), has half the energy density of gasoline, and is very difficult to combust at or below the freezing mark.
Still, the simple fact that it’s liquid results in enormous potential where the concept of the fueling infrastructure is concerned.
