Gasoline-powered cars

In fact, the idea of electric cars is not new. In the early days of the automohile, electric cars were more common than gasoline-powered cars. The production of electric cars peaked in 1912, hut then completely stopped in the 1930s. 

The importance of lowering automobile emissions has already resulted in changes in car manufacturing. Electric cars, which were popular 100 years ago but fell by the wayside because they could not keep up with gasoline-powered cars, are making a comeback. Although battery-powered vehicles are useful for short, slow trips aroimd a crowded campus, for instance, they continue to be plagued by limited speeds and durations. Automobile manufacturers have alleviated these problems by com-... 

In Sweden, three-way catalysts have been required on all cars since 1989, and tax incentives were offered to purchase such vehicles in the 1987 and 1988 model years. Figure 16.34 shows the CO and hydrocarbon exhaust emissions as a function of model year of gasoline-powered cars, measured using a remote-sensing technique (Sjodin, 1994). There is a large decrease in the emissions from 1987 to 1988 and 1989, supporting the effectiveness of these motor vehicle exhaust controls. 

Renault-Nissan is heavily committed to electric vehicles as well. The company plans to launch an electric car in the U.S. market in 2010. The car will be designed to have a range of 100 miles and performance comparable to that of a V-6 gasoline-powered car. A quick plug in of about one hour will deliver a recharge of about 80% of the batteries capacity. 

Lenner M, Lindqvist O, Rosen A. 1983. The N02/NO ratio in emissions from gasoline-powered cars ... 

Eventually, fuel-cell cars such as this one may replace gasoline-powered cars. 

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