The world as we know it is experiencing a serious crisis.

The industrial revolution allowed for the production of machines in mass quantities. These machines are used almost every day by almost everyone and run off of fossil fuels. These fossil fuels not only pollute our atmosphere but the supply of these resources are running low and prices of fossil fuels will only increase in the future. Our dependence on a depleting resource has alerted many intellectuals to try and find alternative power sources. To find an alternative power source, it needs to not only replicate or improve performance and efficiency of the machine but must also meet strict regulations and laws regarding emission from a machine. Many alternative fuels do not meet these criteria and therefor in-depth research is not conducted. Recent advances in technology has helped make several alternative fuels a viable alternative to fossil fuels. The purpose of this literature review is to relay information, research and findings to any engineer, specifically mechanical engineers, to show that we are on the brink of finding a sustainable alternative fuel. The engineers can then focus on finding a realistic alternative fuel that can be used by the public. Most of the research is important because it is the beginning step to creating an alternative fuel along with engines that use this alternative fuel. You must first find optimum conditions to produce optimum results. This can provide a knowledge base to build upon when creating engines that efficiently use the alternative fuel while meeting the strict regulations of emissions. Before conducting any research on an alternative fuel, you must first choose one that shows promise as a realistic alternative fuel source. You must take into account many aspects such as availability, cost, efficiency and reliability. Lucky for us many people have already conducted basic research on viable alternative fuel sources. One alternative fuel that has caught the attention of many engineers is biodiesel. Biodiesel is a vegetable oil or animal fat based diesel fuel that can be used alone or mixed with standard petro diesel. One of the major issues of

biodiesel is it has a higher viscosity than standard diesel which makes it less efficient. This has deterred many people from switching over to the alternative fuel. Recent experiments trying to improve the efficiency of biodiesel have been conducted with some minor success. It was hypothesized and proven that preheating lowers the viscosity of biodiesel fuel which increases the efficiency and even reduces harmful emissions (Natesan, N. Kapilan). Biodiesel is not the only alternative fuel that shows promise as a realistic alternative to fossil fuels. Bioethanol has been causing a commotion among engineering discourse communities. Bioethanol as an alternative fuel is a relatively new idea so not much research has been conducted. So before anyone can seriously consider making the switch to bioethanol, experiments must be done to find the optimum conditions of bioethanol to produce the optimum results. An experiment conducted found that a temperature of 90 degrees Celsius produces the optimum results when considering fuel consumption, distillation and emission output (Ing, Wardhana). Once you choose the alternative fuel you think shows the most promise, you must find a way to accurately test the fuel to find out more information. Multiple experiments must be made before a resource can be used by the public. A test bed was designed to test multiple alternative fuels in an engine being used in cars today. Many aspects must be measured and recorded to ensure accurate results and conclusions. The test bed which was designed by Alp Tekin Ergenc can help many engineers effectively test an alternative fuel. The duration, number of phases, timing and pressure of the injection are all controlled in the test-bed. Tampering with each of these conditions can lead you to find the best results when using the alternative fuel. When all of the data is collected and analyzed, an engineer must then weigh the positives and negatives of using the fuel as an alternative to fossil fuels. The positives of using the

alternative fuel must outweigh the positives of fossil fuels, while having minimum negative effects when being used. Only then will the fuel be accepted by the public as a good solution to our depleting fossil fuel problem. Biomass, which both biodiesel and bioethanol are derived from, has been studied and reviewed to evaluate the positives, negatives and challenges of using biomass. One of the major positives of biomass is that it is a renewable, biodegradable, non-toxic fuel source made from waste. It is also safer to use than diesel because it has a higher flash point. The disadvantages of using biomass is that it can alter the food chain. Another disadvantage is that quality deteriorates when stored for a long period of time. It also shortens the life cycle of the engines (Malik, Ashish). Unfortunately the positives of biomass do not outweigh its negative effects so more research and innovations must be preformed before it can be used. Another alternative fuel that has been carefully reviewed is biodiesel. It has proven to reduce emissions and it A negative effect of biodiesel, just like with biomass, is that it can alter the food chain. This can have devastating effects on not just animals but humans too. Before biodiesel can be heavily relied on, we must also improve the reliability of the fuel. Changing climates fluctuates the efficiency of biodiesel (Mohammad Mehrali). The research has not shown a permanent alternative fuel but the options have been narrowed to realistic solutions we can focus on. New ways of thinking will eventually lead us to the perfect alternative fuel. One idea I did not see being explored in the research is testing alternative fuels on different engines. Most of the engines used for testing were standard direct injected engines. Rotary engines have proven to be reliable with a lot less moving mechanical parts and are in mass production today. My project proposal would be to test a number of different alternative fuels in a rotary engine. The experiment would be set up using multiple rotary engines, each containing different fuels, one of course would contain plain gas, which

would be our control for comparison. Efficiency and effectiveness of the fuel as well as emissions would be analyzed and recorded. The results would be compared with one another using graphs to visually show the results. The results would then be published most likely in an academic journal so the information can be shared with other engineers who could make improvements. All of the research done is a requirement to find a solution to a worldwide problem such as our dependency on fossil fuels. The research preformed proves what we know, gives us new information and shows what needs to be improved. What we have proven is that mankind is close to freeing itself from our dependency on fossil fuels. It is only a matter of time.