Vehicle Fuel Research Articles

Development of Internet of Things (IoT) Based Monitoring of Hazardous Exhaust Compounds in Air - A Review

Presence of pollutants in Air is the most prominent problem globally confronted now a day. The extreme use of fueled vehicles and rapid urbanization has deteriorated the air quality. This deteriorated air contains hazardous compounds like Mono-oxides & Di-oxides of carbon, Sulphur, Nitrogen, Atmospheric Particulate Matter. Exposure to such hazardous compounds in the air for a long time can cause damage to the human health. Traditional air monitoring systems consists of monitoring stations. As far as traditional air quality monitoring methods are concerned, they are highly expensive and requires a regular maintenance. Due to these limitations, these stations are deployed in small numbers and also it provides indicative values of the sensed data. This monitored data has low resolution and precision. This paper proposes framework for the development of smart and portable system using Internet of Things (IoT) for monitoring of hazardous exhaust compounds in the air using real time. This framework consists of different types of sensors and a controller that are used for monitoring and assessment of the air quality. Also it is used to check the presence of hazardous compounds emitted by different industries and share this data through IOT. The outcome of the proposed research work can be utilized by industries as well as by other agencies to carry out an audit of hazardous exhaust components present in air, so as to take necessary precautions and to save human.

Pilot autonomous hybrid hydrogen refueling station utilizing a metal hydride compressor covering local transportation needs

The need for decreasing carbon emissions in the transportation sector in order to meet the targets of the European Union by 2030, inevitably leads to the large scale adoption of cleaner alternatives. Hydrogen fueled vehicles could possibly provide one such alternative, if we could assume that the necessary infrastructure would be widely available throughout Europe. Already, the European Union has committed to the construction of a significant number of Hydrogen Refueling Stations (HRS) by year 2025 and in view of that, there is a need of developing suitable configurations for the production, compression, storage and dispensing of green hydrogen to hydrogen fueled vehicles. This work presents an autonomous hybrid system which produces green hydrogen by PV- powered water electrolysis (PEM), which is subsequently compressed by a novel metal hydride hydrogen compressor to pressures up to 200 bar. This pilot HRS will meet the daily demand of 2 scooters and a golf cart which have been transformed, in order for their electric motor to be powered by a hydrogen fuel cell instead of a battery. An important element of the work which is presented, revolves around the integration of the metal hydride compressor with the rest of the system, and how this integration won’t hinder its functionality. The complete system design and layout is presented, while the results from the system operation could give a good idea regarding the optimal system sizing for similar large scale applications.

The Impact of China's Preferential Tax Policy on the Development of the Alternative Fuel Vehicle Industry

In order to promote the high-quality and sustainable development of the alternative fuel vehicle industry, the Chinese government has given strong tax policy support. In China, the corporate income tax rate is uniformly 25%, and the government gives tax incentives to high-tech enterprises that meet the relevant appraisal standards: the tax rate is reduced by 15%. The purpose of this work is to analyze the impact of China's tax policy on the production of vehicles using alternative fuels and to assess the significance of tax incentives for the formation of significant incentives for the development of this production. The hypothesis of the study is to confirm the need to provide incentives for high-tech production of vehicles using alternative fuel to maintain a positive financial result of such production. This paper uses the OLS analysis model. Deriving data from the annual financial reports of BYD, Geely, SAIC Motor and Great Wall Motor from 2011 to 2020, analysis is carried out of the impact of income tax rate and debt ratio on net profit margin. Research has confirmed that income tax is positively correlated with net profit margin, and the debt ratio is negatively correlated with the corporate net profit margin. The higher the debt ratio, the less conducive to the improvement of the company's net profit margin. Corporate net profit margins are more sensitive to changes in income tax. This also provides an effective way to improve the tax policy to promote the development of new energy vehicles. Tax policy is the most effective tool for the government to carry out macro-control, helping to avoid the harm caused by "market failure" and guiding the development direction of the production of vehicles using alternative fuels.

Fuel Consumption-Reduction Investment Decisions and Coordination Contracts in Fuel Vehicle Supply Chains: A Dynamic Analysis

Fuel Consumption-Reduction Investment Decisions and Coordination Contracts in Fuel Vehicle Supply Chains: A Dynamic Analysis

Carbon Emission and Fuel Consumption Reduction Strategies for a Fuel Vehicle Supply Chain Based on the Manufacturer's Carbon Social Responsibility

Carbon Emission and Fuel Consumption Reduction Strategies for a Fuel Vehicle Supply Chain Based on the Manufacturer's Carbon Social Responsibility

Kansei engineering for new energy vehicle exterior design: An internet big data mining approach

New energy vehicles (NEVs) such as electronic cars represent a major trend in the automobile industry, where most their exterior designs still follow those of convention fuelled vehicles (FVs). It is important to investigate whether NEV users have unique requirements that differ from those of traditional users. Kansei engineering is a practical tool for perceptual demand analysis. However, the conventional method requires questionnaires or surveys to perform limited data collection. In this study, we utilised massive internet data to collect user Kansei requirements for NEV exterior design. The Scrapy crawler was adopted for data collection and a bidirectional long short-term memory, conditional random field, and multilayer perceptron framework was developed for text mining. To quantify design features and Kansei image scores, a hybrid Apriori + structural equation model (SEM) system is proposed, where the data-driven Apriori algorithm can explore the hidden relationships in big user generated comments, while the SEM model captures the users’ behaviour and decision procedure so that to provide interpretable results. In addition, the association rules mined from user comments by Apriori can facilitate the specification of a complicated SEM model, substantially reducing the modelling and calibration effort. Goodness-of-fit results suggest that the proposed model outperforms conventional models. A case study on 1805 automobiles, 287 brands, and 369105 comments was conducted and the results suggest that some design features that would increase the Kansei image scores for conventional FVs may have the opposite effect on NEVs. Discussions on engineering and managerial insights are presented and the discovered rules and relationships are employed to develop a design-aided system.

Effects of working conditions on the operating characteristics of an injection system applied on CNG fueled vehicles

A model-based study is conducted to examine the operating characteristics of an injection system applied on CNG fueled vehicles. This injection system is a combination of an electric pressure regulator, a rail tube, and a solenoid injector. The electric pressure regulator has a great potential to be widely used in injection systems of natural gas-fueled engines due to its flexible operation, which can help to improve the engine performance and reduce emission. This paper presents a simulation study using mathematical models to describe and analyze the operating characteristics of the gaseous fuel injection system, in which models of electric pressure regulator, solenoid fuel injector, and control model for electric pressure regulator are presented. The simulation results are compared with experimental data to validate the simulation models. Effects of working conditions, including coil resistance of the electric pressure regulator, inlet gas pressure, and set pressure in the rail tube, on the operating characteristics of the gaseous fuel injection system are investigated. Simulation results show that when the coil resistance of the electric pressure regulator is increased from 3.1 Ω to 4.1 Ω, the maximum fluctuation of the controlled gas pressure in the rail tube is reduced from 0.017 to 0.012 MPa, respectively. By decreasing the inlet gas pressure of the electric pressure regulator from 2.5 to 2.3 MPa, the controlled gas pressure in the rail tube is more stable with the maximum fluctuation significantly reduced from 0.012 to 0.002 MPa, respectively, which leads to stability in injection flow rate. The increase of set pressure in the rail tube from 0.5 to 0.7 MPa can help to improve the stability of the controlled gas pressure in the rail tube with the maximum fluctuation respectively reduced from 0.002 to 0.001 MPa.

Psychological Drivers of Alternative Fuel Vehicles’ Adoption and Ecologically Responsible Use

Environmental problems caused by global warming are becoming alarming with every passing day. To curb greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions, promoting alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) and sustainable transport mode choices is critical. This study explores the predictors of eco-social purchase, use, and conservation intentions in a developing country by employing an extended model of the theory of planned behaviour (TPB). Using a self-administered survey technique, data were collected from a nationally representative sample of 1372 customers of three leading automobile manufacturers from eight big cities of Pakistan. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was applied to test the measurement and structural models. Results showed that the extended model of TPB received support in the context of Pakistani culture and for the targeted behaviours related to eco-social purchase, use, and conservation intentions concerning AFVs. Implications for marketers and theoretical contribution are discussed at the end.

INNOVATIVE METHODS OF SEPARATION OF GLYCEROL-CONTAINING RAW MATERIALS FROM BIOFUELS

Transport consumes about 20% of the world's primary energy, mainly oil. This situation is unacceptable for countries that do not have their own oil reserves and want a stable economy and energy independence. Communities in many countries recognize that these problems continue to accompany the use of road transport and have long paid serious attention to the use of alternative fuels for vehicles, including biofuels, natural gas and hydrogen. However, in the current increase in the number of food industry facilities, it is necessary to deal with food products that have a negative impact on the environment (food fats). According to some data, the amount of garbage per day can range from a few kilograms to tens of tons. Approximately 90% of diesel biofuels (DBs) are mainly derived from processed oils and raw materials, including fats and oils of animal or vegetable origin that are recyclable. Biofuel is a biologically harmless product. In contact with water, the wine does not harm aquatic flora and fauna. In water or soil, it undergoes almost complete biological decomposition. Combustion of diesel biofuels emits much less carbon dioxide (CO2) than combustion of conventional fuels. Of course, there are drawbacks. First, biofuels have low frost resistance. Undiluted biofuel damages rubber hoses and gaskets. Biofuels have a certain shelf life. Due to increased maintenance costs, deposits can contaminate fuel equipment and filters during operation. Particular attention should be paid to the free glycerin that remains during production. The article considers biofuel production technologies and methods of glycerin removal. The focus is on devices that allow you to remove glycerin mobile. As a result, a faucet was proposed in which a filter was installed to remove residual glycerin and a study of its operation using the FlowVision program was performed. The simulation model of operation of the mixer with reception of indicators of its work is executed.

Design and Wheel Torque Performance Test of the Electric Racing Car Concept E-Falco

To reduce the use of fossil fuels in vehicles and reduce exhaust emissions, it is necessary to use electric vehicle technology. Solidworks software is used in designing and manufacturing an electric car and a simulation is carried out using CFD (Computation Fluid Dynamic) software to determine the strength of the frame structure and air drag when the electric car is running. The performance test of the motor by using the dyno test to determine the acceleration time, power, and torque of the motor. The results of the simulation show that at a speed of 10 km/h the air drag is 6.24 N, a speed of 20 km/h is 24.64 N, and a speed of 40 km/h is 93.92 N. The results of the dyno test shows that the acceleration time with full acceleration from a speed of 0-70 km/h is 13.63 seconds, the maximum power output by the motor is 14.17 hp occurs at a speed of 36-53 km/h and the amount of peak torque released by the motor occurs at a speed of 13 km/h at 228 Nm.

Simulation of Possible Fire and Explosion Hazards of Clean Fuel Vehicles in Garages

Clean fuel is advocated to be used for sustainability. The number of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and hydrogen vehicles is increasing globally. Explosion hazard is a threat. On the other hand, the use of hydrogen is under consideration in Hong Kong. Explosion hazards of these clean fuel (LPG and hydrogen) vehicles were studied and are compared in this paper. The computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software Flame Acceleration Simulator (FLACS) was used. A car garage with a rolling shutter as its entrance was selected for study. Dispersion of LPG from the leakage source with ignition at a higher position was studied. The same garage was used with a typical hydrogen vehicle leaking 3.4 pounds (1.5 kg) of hydrogen in 100 s, the mass flow rate being equal to 0.015 kgs−1. The hydrogen vehicle used in the simulation has two hydrogen tanks with a combined capacity of 5 kg. The entire tank would be completely vented out in about 333 s. Two scenarios of CFD simulation were carried out. In the first scenario, the rolling shutter was completely closed and the leaked LPG or hydrogen was ignited at 300 s after leakage. The second scenario was conducted with a gap height of 0.3 m under the rolling shutter. Predicted results of explosion pressure and temperature show that appropriate active fire engineering systems are required when servicing these clean fuel vehicles in garages. An appropriate vent in an enclosed space such as the garage is important in reducing explosion hazards.

Measurement and Dynamic Modeling of Hydrogen Separation from Hydrogen Enriched Natural Gas Using Phosphoric Acid Doped Polybenzimidazole Hydrogen Pump

The blending of hydrogen into pre-existing natural gas pipelines as a means of transporting hydrogen to consumers is an attractive strategy with regards to cost and efficiency [1]. In many jurisdictions hydrogen blending has been determined to be technically feasible today when considering concentrations of hydrogen up to 15-20% by volume [2]. Fuel cell electric vehicle fueling, among other desirable hydrogen end-uses, requires high-purity hydrogen feedstock and thus the capability to efficiently extract high purity hydrogen from hydrogen blended natural gas is identified as a critical component in adopting hydrogen natural gas blends as an energy transition strategy [3].Proton-conducting membranes can be utilized to separate hydrogen electrolytically from blended gas streams efficiently while producing a high purity product. Perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) membranes such as Nafion are the most employed due to their high proton conductivity as well as their high mechanical strength but are complicated by the need for membrane humidification. High-temperature proton exchange membranes (HT-PEM) offer attractive characteristics relative to the PFSA-based cells, particularly in their application to hydrogen separation. Phosphoric-acid (PA) doped polybenzimidazole (PBI) membranes have high proton conductivity at temperatures of 160oC without the presence of water and due to these higher operating temperatures have improved reaction kinetics and catalyst tolerance to impurities such as CO and sulfur. Their ability to separate hydrogen from nitrogen, CO2, and low concentrations of CO (~1% vol) was shown by Perry et al. [4]. Recent developments in PA-doped polymeric materials synthesis has led to improved durability and performance [5] and even higher operating temperatures offering further performance benefits [6].This study examines the use of a single cell HT-PEM H2 pump based on PA-doped PBI membrane for the separation of hydrogen from hydrogen blended methane and natural gas. The experiments are performed on 5 cm2 cells with in-house gas diffusion electrodes. Freudenberg H23C2 is used as a gas diffusion layer. The catalyst layer consists of PTFE binder and 40% wt Pt/C catalyst with loading of 1 mg Pt/cm2 . The PBI membranes (Fumapem AP-30) are soaked in 85%wt H3PO4 at room temperature for 2 days. Hydrogen concentration in the feed gas (2-20% molar concentration), hydrogen recovery rate, and other operating conditions are varied to characterize cell performance in terms of hydrogen separation efficiency. We show a feasibility to separate hydrogen from various blends from 20% down to 2 % molar concentration (Figure 1). For the most constrained case of 2 % H2 in methane an overpotential of 240 mV at 0.2 A/cm2 was observed. Gas chromatography is used to provide outlet gas composition. Electrochemical measurements from cell operation are used to modify and validate existing 2-D non-isothermal dynamic PEM cell model [7].

Estimation of the Required Bio-fuels Substituting Petroleum-based Fuels in Vehicles in the Island of Crete, Greece

The required bio-fuels for substituting petroleum-based fuels in vehicles in the island of Crete, Greece have been estimated. The quantities of gasoline and diesel oil currently used in vehicles in Crete as well as their GHG emissions have been calculated. The quantities of bio-ethanol and bio-diesel substituting 14% of them, according to the EU goal for 2030, have been evaluated. The necessary land area for cultivating energy crops producing the required bio-fuels has been also calculated. The total quantity of gasoline and diesel oil used in vehicles in 2020 in Crete has been estimated at 273,231 tons while their CO2 emissions at 886,702 tons. The bio-ethanol required for substituting 14% of the annual gasoline consumption has been calculated at 29,709 tons while the bio-diesel required for substituting 14% of the annual diesel oil consumption at 24,802 tons. The necessary land area cultivated with sugar beet producing the abovementioned quantity of bio-ethanol has been estimated at 7,427 ha while the necessary land area cultivated with rape seed producing the abovementioned quantity of bio-diesel has been estimated at 24,802 ha. The overall necessary land area, at 32,229 ha, corresponds at 3.81% of the total area in Crete. Energy crops have not been cultivated so far in Crete while the land availability is limited. It is proposed that apart from using bio-fuels in conventional vehicles equipped with ICEs different options for reducing GHG emissions in transportation, including the use of electric vehicles, should be considered in Crete.

Biohythane as a high potential fuel from anaerobic digestion of organic waste: A review

Recently, the bio-transformation of organic wastes to value-added products has gained huge interest due to problems related to waste disposal and fossil fuel depletion. Gaseous fuels such as biohydrogen and biomethane generation from biomass has been researched extensively and is well developed. Currently, biohythane, a gaseous mixure of biohydrogen and biomethane, with hydrogen composition of approximately 10–30% is gaining more attention due to its superior characteristics over other biofuels. The co-production of hydrogen and methane in two-stage process improves the total energy recovery up to 100% and 30% respectively compared to single-stage process. The optimal conditions for biohythane production are pH 5.5–6.5, 37 °C for 1–3 d during first stage, and pH 7–7.5, 37 °C for 10–15 d during second stage. Hythane with 10% and 20% (v v−1) hydrogen has achieved reduced NOx emission of 45% and 50% respectively in comparison with the methane fueled vehicles, whereas hythane with 30% (v v−1) hydrogen has achieved reduced CO2 emission of 69 g km−1. Although biohythane technology has high value as a vehicular fuel, its potential applications are yet to be explored. Enhanced biohythane quality and production rate can be obtained by selecting the most feasible substrates, controlling the microbial growth, using metabolically engineered strains and optimizing the bioreactor design. This review comprehensively discusses the mechanism of biohythane production; and its enhancement strategies such as pretreatment, co-digestion, optimization of physicochemical parameters and process integration to improvise the biohythane productivity. Finally, the techno-economic aspect for large scale biohythane production has also been addressed. In specific, this article discusses the latest achievements, their constraints and future prospects for lucrative biohythane generation.

Heterogeneous preferences for EVs: Evidence from Iran

To overcome the environmental side effects of over-utilizing fossil fuels and road traffic emissions, Alternative Fuel Vehicles (AFVs) are alternative power engines. However, as AFVs have not yet penetrated the automotive market in Iran, using the choice experiment model, this study considers the heterogeneous preference for Electric Vehicles (EVs) in four megacities of Iran. Therefore, 1000 respondents are interviewed and are asked to choose their preferred vehicle between hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), battery electric vehicles (BEVs), and internal combustion engine vehicles. Furthermore, this study contributes to the literature by employing the Policoric correlation matrix, not Pearson, to investigate the influence of psychological factors besides the macro, micro, and product factors in adopting Evs. The latent class and mixed logit model reveal the monetary factors negatively affected consumers' willingness to pay for HEVs and BEVs. In contrast, the charging availability and non-monetary policies are positively connected to the acceptance rate of BEVs, While risk-aversion and normative-face perspectives reduce it. Furthermore, the class membership variable shows that the younger tend to purchase HEVs, and high-income groups are the most significant potential buyers of HEVs and BEVs. Therefore, the younger and high-income groups could be considered the target group in Iran's early penetrating EVs.

Improving Hybrid Vehicle Fuel Efficiency Using Inverse Reinforcement Learning

Deciding what mix of engine and battery power to use is critical to hybrid vehicles' fuel efficiency. Current solutions consider several factors such as the charge of the battery and how efficient the engine operates at a given speed. Previous research has shown that by taking into account the future power requirements of the vehicle, a more efficient balance of engine vs. battery power can be attained. In this paper, we utilize a probabilistic driving route prediction system, trained using Inverse Reinforcement Learning, to optimize the hybrid control policy. Our approach considers routes that the driver is likely to be taking, computing an optimal mix of engine and battery power. This approach has the potential to increase vehicle power efficiency while not requiring any hardware modification or change in driver behavior. Our method outperforms a standard hybrid control policy, yielding an average of 1.22% fuel savings.

A Study on the Effects of Plug Shape on Operating Performance of an Electric Pressure Regulator Applied for Gaseous Fueled Vehicles

A model-based study was conducted to examine the effects of plug shape on electromagnetic force and dynamic response of an electric pressure regulator (EPR) applied for gaseous fueled vehicles. Mathematical models were established to describe the operation of the EPR, including mechanical and electrical models. A two-dimensional (2D) symmetric model of the EPR was built in Maxwell software to simulate the electromagnetic force under the effects of plug shape. Afterward, the 2D symmetric model of EPR with the electromagnetic force calculated was imported into Simplorer software to simulate the dynamic response of the EPR based on the influence of plug shape. The shape of plug in the EPR was changed through the dimension parameters denoted by dimension (h) and slope angle (). The simulation results show that the electromagnetic force and dynamic response of the EPR can be optimized when h and  are selected at 3mm and 480, respectively.

The Subsidized Green Revolution: The Impact of Public Incentives on the Automotive Industry to Promote Alternative Fuel Vehicles (AFVs) in the Period from 2010 to 2018

Throughout decades, conflicts related to the access and usage of various energy sources have caused political tensions between nations and confederations of states. Thus, partially to decrease the dependence on fossil fuels, a thorough transition towards renewable energies has been promoted by several regional and national governments as well as by multinational institutions such as the European Union. In this context, the automotive industry has particularly been held responsible for the production of negative externalities, such as global greenhouse gas emissions (GHG emissions), noise and air pollution. To a notable extent, these externalities were caused by vehicles running on fossil fuels such as petroleum products, including gasoline, diesel fuel and fuel oil. Accordingly, it is often argued that replacing vehicles run by internal combustion engines (ICEs) with so-called alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs), particularly with plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs), is crucial to increase the sustainability of the transport sector. Moreover, several EU-member states aim to reduce the vehicle-related petrol and diesel demand to decrease their dependence on foreign energy sources. However, one must consider that there are important economic costs related to such a transition process. This paper evaluates the short-term and long-term effects of fiscal policies on the European automotive market in the period from 2010 to 2018, focusing on the impact of mentioned public incentives for AFVs. This public interventionism will be critically evaluated to examine the effectiveness of government incentives in promoting AFVs, particularly for plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs). The author argues that the rather positive sales evolution of AFVs was not caused by corresponding actual customer demand but mainly by governmental policies in an increasingly interventionist market. He acknowledges that the growing variety of available PEV models, the increasing driving range of electric vehicles, as well as their decreasing production costs due to economies of scale, have helped PEVs to become more competitive. However, the concern should be raised that mentioned public interventionism is unsustainable from a macroeconomic perspective, possibly leading to significant market distortion and a new artificial market bubble. The narrowed focus on battery electric vehicles prevents the market from further elaborating on other potentially more sustainable technologies. Moreover, from a geostrategic perspective, the transition of the European automotive industry towards electrification is likely to reduce the EU’s dependency on imported fossil fuels but enables several non-European automotive brands to conquer a significant market with their new competitive plug-in electric vehicle technologies.

Using DID Model to Analyse the Impact of Vehicle Purchase Tax on the Sales of Alternative Fuel Vehicle

At present, countries in the world are paying more and more attention to the importance of green development and sustainable growth, and taxation plays a very good role in regulating it. In China, the role of taxation policy as a means of stimulating green consumption is becoming more and more significant. This paper starts with the vehicle purchase tax and uses the Difference in differences (DID) model to study its impact on the alternative fuel vehicle industry. The purpose of the research is to use the method of empirical research to test the impact of preferential vehicle purchase tax policies on the sales of alternative fuel vehicles using automobile production and sales data as samples. This research is helpful to enrich the research on preferential policies of vehicle purchase tax, and provides a good reference for empirical research on the impact of vehicle purchase tax on the sales of the automobile industry. Researched the impact of tax incentives for automobile purchase tax, and proposes constructive guidance with China’s specific situation. It has an important impact on promoting China’s further improvement of the tax system reform and the development of the alternative fuel vehicle industry, and also plays an active role in supporting macroeconomic transformation and development.

Spatial and unobserved heterogeneity in consumer preferences for adoption of electric and hybrid vehicles: A Bayesian hierarchical modeling approach

The transition to low carbon vehicles known as alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) is well underway. This transition has been motivated partly by consumer demand and partly by legislation such as the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate, which requires manufacturers to sell a certain percentage of their vehicles as AFVs. While the long-term adoption of AFVs (specifically, electric and hybrids) may take several years, there is a need to understand consumer preferences for AFV adoption and the pathways of AFV adoption from a national perspective. Therefore, this study sought to provide information about consumer preferences regarding AFV ownership while considering spatial and unobserved heterogeneity in consumer preferences, which can potentially impact societal transition to low carbon fueled vehicles. The 2017 National Household Travel Survey was used to calibrate Bayesian logit and hierarchical models. The findings of these models reveal that higher gasoline prices contribute toward the adoption of battery electric vehicles. The results also reveal that the perceived disadvantages of AFVs for long commutes are the key barrier in wider adoption of AFVs. Interestingly, frequent use of the internet by consumers revealed a higher likelihood for purchase of hybrid vehicles. Furthermore, West Coast residents are observed to be a large portion of the early adopters and are more likely to purchase hybrids as compared to battery electric vehicles. The knowledge generated by this study has implications for making better informed decisions about AFV adoption and developing incentives to promote wider adoption of AFVs by overcoming their perceived disadvantages.