Loading...
A Comparison of Nitrogen Oxide Emissions from Heavy-Duty Diesel, Natural Gas, and Electric Vehicles
9/21/2021
Diesel, natural gas, and electric heavy-duty vehicles can be designed and manufactured with the capability of complying with the ultra-low nitrogen oxide (NOx) limits envisioned in the next set of California and federal heavy-duty vehicle regulations. This briefing compares the capabilities of these three powertrain types in meeting an ultra-low NOx standard across four key areas: feasibility, cost, health impacts, and climate impacts.
Authors: Muncrief, R.
Notes:
This copyrighted publication can be accessed on The International Council on Clean Transportation's website.
Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report, July 2021
9/15/2021
The Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report for July 2021 is a quarterly report on the prices of alternative fuels in the U.S. and their relation to gasoline and diesel prices. This issue describes prices that were gathered from Clean Cities coordinators and stakeholders between July 1, 2021 and July 15, 2021, and then averaged in order to determine regional price trends by fuel and variability in fuel price within regions and among regions. The prices collected for this report represent retail, at-the-pump sales prices for each fuel, including Federal and state motor fuel taxes.
Table 2 reports that the nationwide average price (all amounts are per gallon) for regular gasoline has increased 27 cents from $2.82 to $3.09; diesel increased 15 cents from $3.11 to $3.26; CNG increased 3 cents from $2.19 to $2.22; ethanol (E85) increased 22 cents from $2.40 to $2.62; propane increased 5 cents from $2.93 to $2.98; and biodiesel (B20) increased 23 cents from $2.82 to $3.05.
According to Table 3, CNG is 87 cents less than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis and E85 is 31 cents more than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis.
Authors: Bourbon, E.
A Low Carbon Fuel Standard: In Brief
7/7/2021
As part of the congressional deliberations on addressing climate change, Congress may consider policy options for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the transportation sector. One policy option Congress may examine is a low carbon fuel standard (LCFS). An LCFS is a policy that requires transportation fuels to meet a certain energy-related GHG target (e.g., a specific carbon intensity) within a specified jurisdiction and timeframe. This report provides a brief overview of an LCFS, congressional interest in an LCFS, the connection between the Renewable Fuel Standard and an LCFS, and considerations for policymakers.
Authors: Bracmort, K.
Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report, April 2021
7/6/2021
The Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report for April 2021 is a quarterly report on the prices of alternative fuels in the U.S. and their relation to gasoline and diesel prices. This issue describes prices that were gathered from Clean Cities coordinators and stakeholders between April 1, 2021 and April 15, 2021, and then averaged in order to determine regional price trends by fuel and variability in fuel price within regions and among regions. The prices collected for this report represent retail, at-the-pump sales prices for each fuel, including Federal and state motor fuel taxes.
Table 2 reports that the nationwide average price (all amounts are per gallon) for regular gasoline has increased 50 cents from $2.32 to $2.82; diesel increased 47 cents from $2.64 to $3.11; CNG remained the same at $2.19; ethanol (E85) increased 36 cents from $2.04 to $2.40; propane increased 8 cents from $2.85 to $2.93; and biodiesel (B20) increased 40 cents from $2.42 to $2.82.
According to Table 3, CNG is 63 cents less than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis and E85 is 30 cents more than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis.
Authors: Bourbon, E.
Benefits of Transportation Electrification in a Post Pandemic World
6/1/2021
The first three months of 2021 saw early actions from the Biden administration and strong commitments to transportation electrification made by automakers, utilities, and other key players in the U.S. electric vehicle market. This activity has increased the number and breadth of pathways that policymakers can pursue to accelerate the shift towards transportation electrification and capture more of the billions of dollars in investments committed to the technology worldwide. This paper outlines three key opportunities for the country to achieve success and rapidly decarbonize the transportation sector by taking decisive action at federal level, expanding state policy frameworks, and prioritizing underserved communities.
Authors: Smith, C.; Nigro, N.; Lepre, N.
Clean Cities Coalitions 2019 Activity Report
5/6/2021
Clean Cities coalition activities resulted in an energy use impact (EUI) of over 1 billion gasoline-gallons equivalent (GGE), comprised of net alternative fuels used and energy savings from efficiency projects, in 2019. Participation in vehicle and infrastructure development projects remained strong, as did alternative fuel use and resulting overall EUI. Clean Cities coalition activities reduce emissions as they impact energy use. Coalition-reported activities prevented nearly 5 million carbon dioxide-equivalent tons of emissions (only greenhouse gas [GHG] emissions are reported here; criteria pollutants and other emissions are not included in this report). Coalitions were successful in securing project grant awards from numerous (non-DOE) outside sources. For other Federal, State, and local agencies and private sector foundations, see funding section on page 24. The 82 project grant awards in 2019 generated $225 million in funds from coalition members and project partners along with $9.5 million in DOE grant funds. Coalitions also collected $1.2 million in stakeholder dues and $1.6 million in operational funds from host organizations. In macro terms, this supplemental funding represents nearly a 6:1 leveraging of the $38 million that was included in the VTO Technology Integration budget in Fiscal Year 2019. Clean Cities coordinators spent nearly 136,000 hours pursuing their coalitions' goals in 2019. The average coordinator is quite experienced and has held his or her position for at least eight years. Coordinators logged more than 3,525 outreach, education, and training activities in 2019, which reached an estimated 23 million people.
Authors: Singer, M.; Johnson, C.
Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report, January 2021
4/23/2021
The Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report for January 2021 is a quarterly report on the prices of alternative fuels in the U.S. and their relation to gasoline and diesel prices. This issue describes prices that were gathered from Clean Cities coordinators and stakeholders between January 1, 2021 and January 15, 2021, and then averaged in order to determine regional price trends by fuel and variability in fuel price within regions and among regions. The prices collected for this report represent retail, at-the-pump sales prices for each fuel, including Federal and state motor fuel taxes.
Table 2 reports that the nationwide average price (all amounts are per gallon) for regular gasoline has increased 14 cents from $2.18 to $2.32; diesel increased 24 cents from $2.40 to $2.64; CNG increased 1 cent from $2.18 to $2.19; ethanol (E85) increased 8 cents from $1.96 to $2.04; propane increased 12 cents from $2.73 to $2.85; and biodiesel (B20) increased 13 cents from $2.29 to $2.42.
According to Table 3, CNG is 13 cents less than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis, while E85 is $0.33 more than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis.
Authors: Bourbon, E.
Carbon Intensity of Corn Ethanol in the United States: State of the Science
3/10/2021
The carbon intensity of corn ethanol, the primary renewable fuel used in transportation, has been actively researched and quantified over the last three decades. Reliable estimates of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for corn ethanol are important since these values help determine significant policy and market decisions on state, national, and international levels. This study reviews well-to-wheel GHG life cycle analyses for corn ethanol and evaluates models, input data, and results for farming, fuel production, co-product credit, land use change, transport of feedstock and fuel, tailpipe, and denaturant.
Authors: Scully, M.; Norris, G.; Falconi, T.; MacIntosh, D.
Fuel a Greener Future
3/1/2021
This report outlines the importance of utilizing all available low-carbon heavy-duty transport options available today to dramatically lower overall transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions and shares important information about the availability, resiliency, and sustainability of domestically sourced renewable natural gas vehicle and fueling technology.
Evaluation of Safety Standards for Fuel System and Fuel Container Integrity of Alternative Fuel Vehicles
2/1/2021
In this report, NREL offers considerations to reflect minimum safety standards, current industry best practices and existing standards for light-, medium-, and heavy-duty CNG and propane vehicle fuel system container integrity, fuel container integrity, and fuel container fire tests. The considerations for fuel system and fuel container integrity requirements are justified by literature review, relevant research, and technical forum feedback. In addition, this report provides relevant research, where available, and identifies test procedures to evaluate compliance with the performance requirements.
Authors: Lynch, L.; Browning, L.; Snelling, A.
Federal Best Practices: Core Principles of Sustainable Fleet Management
11/2/2020
This document is designed to help agency fleet managers understand and implement optimal petroleum reduction strategies for each fleet location by evaluating the most appropriate combination of the four core principles of sustainable fleet management: right-sizing the fleet to agency mission by implementing a vehicle allocation methodology study; minimizing vehicle miles traveled; increasing fleet fuel efficiency by replacing inefficient vehicles with more fuel-efficient vehicles, maintaining vehicles, driving more efficiently, and avoiding excessive idling; and optimizing cost-effective alternative fuel use, including maximizing use of existing alternative fuel infrastructure, installing alternative fuel infrastructure where practical (including electric vehicle charging stations), and aligning deployment of alternative fuel vehicles with fueling infrastructure.
Authors: Bentley, J.; Hodge, C.
Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report, October 2020
10/15/2020
The Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report for October 2020 is a quarterly report on the prices of alternative fuels in the U.S. and their relation to gasoline and diesel prices. This issue describes prices that were gathered from Clean Cities coordinators and stakeholders between October 1, 2020 and October 15, 2020, and then averaged in order to determine regional price trends by fuel and variability in fuel price within regions and among regions. The prices collected for this report represent retail, at-the-pump sales prices for each fuel, including Federal and state motor fuel taxes.
Table 2 reports that the nationwide average price (all amounts are per gallon) for regular gasoline has decreased 4 cents from $2.22 to $2.18; diesel decreased 8 cents from $2.48 to $2.40; CNG increased 3 cents from $2.15 to $2.18; ethanol (E85) decreased 3 cents from $1.99 to $1.96; propane decreased 1 cent from $2.74 to $2.73; and biodiesel (B20) decreased 6 cents from $2.35 to $2.29.
According to Table 3, CNG is equal in price to gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis, while E85 is $0.36 more than gasoline on an energy-equivalent basis.
Authors: Bourbon, E.
Evolution of Plug-In Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in the United States
8/1/2020
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) has tracked alternative fueling and electric vehicle charging infrastructure in the United States since 1991. This paper explores the history of the AFDC Station Locator, which was launched in 1999, and discusses the growth of electric vehicle supply equipment. It also looks at how electric vehicle drivers access public charging, and evaluates challenges, gaps, and opportunities facing both electric vehicle drivers and the industry as a whole.
Authors: Brown, A.; Lommele, S.; Eger, R.; Schayowitz, A.
