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Gas prices help grease wheels of fuel research

Gas prices help grease wheels of fuel research
Alternatives show promise, but are still years away from wide availability

Posted Sunday, September 4, 2005 - 6:00 am

By Paul Alongi
STAFF WRITER
palongi@greenvillenews.com

As gas prices topped $3 a gallon, all residents could do was dig deeper into their pockets and wonder if their cars will ever run on anything but gasoline or diesel.

It won't happen anytime soon for the vast majority of residents. But the state's researchers are working on alternatives with the potential to help wean the nation off fossil fuels that leave millions vulnerable to volatile gas prices.

Research stretches from a biodiesel project in a Furman University shed to the Savannah River Site, where scientists hope nuclear technology will help them make hydrogen-powered cars. All of it is in the experimental stage and likely years from changing the way residents motor around town.

It's hard to imagine a time without at least a few cars puttering around on gasoline, but corn-based ethanol, already sold in Greenville County, could become more widely available in the next decade, said Norris McDonald, president of the African American Environmentalist Association near Washington, D.C.

Hurricane Katrina, he said, "maybe shakes the cart a little bit."

To beat the pump, millions of Americans would have to trade in their gas guzzlers for vehicles that run on hydrogen, vegetable oil and other alternatives. In the meantime, the nation remains vulnerable to Gulf Coast hurricanes and Middle East tensions.

Clemson University chemistry professor Stephen Creager is attacking the problem by developing materials that would help make hybrid and hydrogen-powered cars more efficient. It's not just an option, he said, but a necessity.

"Fossil fuels -- petroleum in particular -- is a limited resource," he said. "We're pumping it out at a much faster rate than it was ever put in."

For the first time since the 1970s, Upstate drivers this week watched gas prices soar, waited in line at the pump and dealt with spotty shortages. Gov. Mark Sanford advised people not to panic and said prices would eventually fall.

A growing movement in the state is hoping the long-term answer lies with hydrogen. Savannah River National Laboratory is playing a central role at its headquarters near Aiken, which is best known for making nuclear bomb parts.

Rest at The Greenville News