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| Methanol |
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| Why Methanol is a great transport fuel |
It is well known in the fuel and auto industries that methanol is an excellent, clean, potentially renewable, fuel because:
it produces virtually no particles or NOx and much reduced CO2 See Well-to-Wheels GHG analysis |
it is less volatile and explosive and therefore safer than petrol
Because methanol is a simple stable liquid at normal temperatures, it is safer to handle, store and use as fuel, than Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) and gaseous or liquid Hydrogen. Click here to learn more about Methanol as a fuel |
| Methanol is a powerful candidate to be the future's most important renewable fuel: |
| Methanol - like Hydrogen and Electricity - can be made from most renewable and fossil energy resources |
This graphic shows the interchangeability of methanol with electricity and hydrogen.
Methanol however, is the only one of the three that is easy and cheap to store as it the only one that is liquid at normal temperatures. |
| Virtually unlimited supply potential - There are many well proven process routes to Methanol |
 Methanol is a very simple molecule most often made from synthesis gas. Synthesis gas can be made from virtually any renewable or fossil feedstock, including renewable or nuclear electricity combined with recycled carbon dioxide.
There is therefore virtually no limit to the low carbon supply potential of methanol.
Adequate methanol natural gas based supplies are available on international markets to enable launch today to provide a practical and economic bridge to the low carbon future. |
Introducing methanol can make a major impact on Heavy Goods Vehicle (HGV) carbon emissions
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This graphic shows that the characteristics of methanol allow carbon emissions to be improved immediately.
As methanol manufacture is moved to better technology and low carbon feedstocks the gains become very significant.
The only current methods presently foreseen to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from heavy trucks are the adoption of low rolling resistance tyres and better driver training. |
The Heavy Transport Sector gives the greatest carbon saving |
The graphic shows that, due to the very large fuel consumption of Heavy Goods Vehicles, converting one HGV (assuming the savings described above) gives the same carbon saving that would require the conversion of 30 cars.
It also shows that converting one Light Goods vehicle (LGV) would give the same carbon dioxide saving as converting 6 cars.
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Methanol based fuels have been demonstrated in just about every conceivable engine type many times since the early 1900s.
Until recently, when corn alcohol (bioethanol) was adopted by Indianapolis racing for PR reasons in the US, methanol was used at Indianapolis as a safer alternative to petrol. Methanol continues to be used in dragster racing for its power.
Due to its low emissions and its ability to be made from non-oil sources, concerted efforts were made to introduce the fuel in America during the 70's and 80's as both petrol and diesel substitutes, in 100% form and in 15% (M15) and 85% (M85) petrol blends. These efforts faded away by the late 80's due to the falling price of oil and the lack of a fuel tax shelter in the USA. |
| Zero-m is not alone in recognising methanol as the green fuel of choice for the future. |
| In 2006, Nobel Laureate Professor George Olah of the University of Southern California conclusively established methanol's ability
to replace conventional oil and be made renewably, to carry and store energy and hydrogen, and to transform CO2 from a global warming liability into a raw material for a methanol economy. |
| If it's so good why is it not already in widespread use? |
Despite its wide ranging benefits and the many attempts to launch it around the world methanol still has a negligible presence in today's fuel market for three main reasons:
* the fuel duty rate applicable to methanol is prohibitive for now redundant historical reasons
* the oil industry has not been interested in changing the status in order to provide it as oil was cheap
* the auto industry has not introduced methanol vehicles because methanol has not been available to use |
Oil prices are at historical highs at present with very little sign of falling. The present difficulties over the Gulf well blowout point to increasing regulation of offshore deep drilling which is now the main source of new large oil prospects. This is likely to raise the costs and delay the development of new Non-OPEC oil. This probably means even higher oil prices into the medium and long term.
At the same time new very large sources of natural gas are being found which point to lower gas prices in the medium to longer term. As methanol is currently made from natural gas this means that methanol prices will probably not be exposed to the same upward pressure as petrol and diesel. |
Against the background of these very significant economic trends we believe that a crossroads is being reached where the costs of methanol and diesel and petrol are crossing over in favour of methanol for the long term. (See Graph)
There is no doubt, however, that launch incentives will be required during the introductory stages but we strongly believe that, due to the fundamental changes in the structure of the energy markets that are occurring at present, these will only be required for the first few (5-7) years. |
During the Green Fuel Challenge project Zero-m has established the viability of methanol fuels and also identified and confirmed a way to create early demand growth with retrofit conversions and by providing means to supply the fuel direct to customers economically.
Therefore it now only remains for the UK Government to establish a viable introductory tax regime finally to enable the introduction of methanol based fuels to the UK commercial transport sector. |
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