Reducing Gasoline Consumption Research Articles

Comparative study on combustion and emission of ternary-fuel combined supply SI engine with oxyhydrogen/ethanol/gasoline by different injection modes of fuel

The combination of renewable energy and multifuel combined supply is an efficient way to deal with the energetic crisis and the pollution of environment. Ethanol, gasoline and oxyhydrogen participate in combustion by means of three independent supply paths, which can improve engine power and reduce gasoline consumption and gaseous pollutant emission at the same time. However, the optimization of ternary-fuel combined supply mode is a problem that must be clarified. In this study, the engine performance at four direct injection pressure (DIP), six direct injection timing (DIT), five intake manifold absolute pressures (MAP) and four speeds is studied under the condition of equal ethanol injection ratio and gasoline injection ratio. The experimental results show that ethanol direct injection forms a mixture with a better stratified combustion state than gasoline direct injection. Moreover, oxyhydrogen negatory pressure inhalation (ONPI) can effectually increase Pmax and IMEP, reduce APmax, CA 10–90, CA 0–10, CO emission, HC emission and particulate emission, but increase NOx emission. However, ethanol direct injection (EDI) can reduce NOx emission produced by ONPI, and oxyhydrogen can attenuate the negatory effect on mixture combustion due to the excessive latent heat of vaporization of ethanol. NO emission in EDI mode is reduced by an average of 28.39 % compared to gasoline direct injection (GDI) mode under different MAPs. In conclusion, the combustion and emission characteristics of the engine in EDI + gasoline port injection (GPI) + ONPI mode are better than those in ethanol port injection (EPI) + GDI + ONPI mode. And the control strategy of "9–11 MPa DIP+250–300°CA BTDC DIT +16 L/min oxyhydrogen negative pressure inhalation volume (ONPIv)" can improve the performance of EDI + GPI + ONPI engine while reducing emission.

Does the electric vehicle industry help achieve sustainable development goals?—evidence from China

Electric vehicles (EVs) are regarded as a key low-carbon technology to address sustainability challenges like climate change and air pollution. However, the real-world environmental impacts resulting from rapid EV adoption remain uncertain. This study develops a theoretical framework to quantify the impacts of EV adoption on energy consumption, carbon emissions, and air quality. Then we empirically investigates the influence of surging EV uptake in China using provincial panel data from 2015 to 2020. Our results indicate that increased EV stocks significantly reduced gasoline consumption but boosted coal-based power demand, shifting emissions and air pollutants from transportation to the electricity sector rather than yielding absolute reductions. We find important regional heterogeneity based on differences in grid generation profiles. In provinces more reliant on coal power, the environmental impacts were more severe. The findings also reveal a spatial spillover effect, with emissions transferred from net power-importing regions to exporters. Overall, the rapid EV transition alone appears insufficient to guarantee emissions cuts and environmental gains. Complementary efforts across sectors are essential to align industrial promotion with sustainability objectives. The empirical evidence informs integrated policy design and metrics to maximize decarbonization as EVs are deployed globally. Future research can build on this study by expanding geographical scope, incorporating projections, adopting a multi-disciplinary lens, leveraging microdata, and applying cutting-edge analytical techniques. Pursuing these directions will further advance knowledge on sustainable EV transitions.

The Effect of Silica Compounds (OCTA-H) as a Protective Filter on Carbon Absorption and Reducing Gasoline Consumption for Vehicle Use

The Effect of Silica Compounds (OCTA-H) as a Protective Filter on Carbon Absorption and Reducing Gasoline Consumption for Vehicle Use

Experimental study on combustion and emission of ternary-fuel combined supply SI engine with oxyhydrogen/butanol/gasoline at different excess air ratios

Both oxyhydrogen and butanol are renewable alternative fuels. Based on gasoline/butanol compound injection mode, although the introduction of oxyhydrogen can effectually enhance the optimal BDIr (butanol direct injection ratio), it also leads to an increase in NO emission. Therefore, this paper further studies the influence of lean-burn on the combustion and emission of ternary-fuel combined supply engine with oxyhydrogen/butanol/gasoline. In this paper, three variables are set, namely five BDIr (0–80%), five ONPIv (oxyhydrogen negative pressure inhalation volume) (0–16 L/min) and five λ (1.0–1.4). The results show that the larger the λ, the more significant the impact of oxyhydrogen on improving combustion and thermal transfer inside the cylinder. With the increase of ONPIv, CoVIMEP, CA 10–90 and CA 0-10 decrease, IMEP increases. Under all lean-burn conditions, ONPI can reduce CO and HC emissions. Under the condition of λ = 1.4, when ONPIv = 16 L/min, NO emission is 49.98% lower than the value of the original engine. Moreover, based on BDIr = 40%, 16 L/min ONPIv can elevate the λ limit from 1.41 to 1.83. In summary, “1.1 = λ ≤ 1.2+ONPIv = 16 L/min+60%≤BDIr≤80%” is the excellent control strategy of ONPI + BDI + GPI engine. The synergistic influence of lean-burn and larger BDIr can greatly reduce gasoline consumption and NOx emission caused by oxyhydrogen, but also worsen the mixture combustion atmosphere. ONPI can effectively improve this problem, and further increase energy efficiency. The coupling technology of ternary-fuel combined supply and lean-burn has a positive impact on improving thermal transfer efficiency, optimizing mixture combustion and decreasing gaseous emission.

Gasoline Demand Elasticities at the Backdrop of Lower Oil Prices: Fuel-Subsidizing Country Case

This study investigates the income and price elasticities of gasoline demand for a fuel subsidizing country case, applying three different time-varying coefficient approaches to the data spanning the period from January 2002 to June 2018. The empirical estimations concluded a cointegration relationship between gasoline demand, income, and gasoline price. The income elasticity found ranges from 0.10 to 0.29, while the price elasticity remains constant over time, being −0.15. Income elasticity increases over time, slightly decreasing close to the end of the period, which is specific for a developing country. In the short run, gasoline demand does not respond to the changes in income and price. The policy implications are discussed based on the findings of the study. Research results show that since the income elasticity of demand is not constant, the use of constant elasticities obtained in previous studies might be misleading for policymaking purposes. An increase in income elasticity might be the cause of the inefficiency of the existing vehicles. The small price elasticity allows to say that if policy makers plan to reduce gasoline consumption then increasing its price would not substantially reduce the consumption. The current situation can be utilized to increase energy efficiency and implement eco-friendly technologies. For this purpose, the quality of existing transport modes can be improved. Meanwhile, to meet households’ needs, policies such as providing soft auto loans need to be formed to balance the recent drop in car sales.

IMPROVEMENT OF HEAT PREPARATION PROCESSES OF VEHICLE ENGINE EQUIPPED WITH GASOLINE AND LIQUEFIED OIL SUPPLY GAS SYSTEMS

Presented are the results of experimental studies of the heat treatment system of a vehicle gasoline engine, which is heated to operating temperatures on gasoline, and subsequent operation on liquefied oil gas. The main element of the heat preparation system is a phase transition heat accumulator. The research task to be solved is to minimize the time of heat preparation of the vehicle gasoline engine and, therefore, to reduce gasoline consumption in warm-up modes. To ensure remote registration of vehicle parameters and control of heat preparation processes, an information system for monitoring and control of heat preparation processes of a vehicle engine with a heat accumulator was developed and used. During the research, a gasoline-powered vehicle was used with additionally installed gas equipment. The use of a phase transition heat accumulator in the heat preparation system of a vehicle gasoline engine (operating both on gasoline and on liquefied gas fuel) has confirmed a significant improvement in fuel economy. For this, the engine heat preparation should be carried out immediately before starting from an additional heat source to the coolant temperature in the cooling system up to 50° C. The research results have confirmed the capabilities of the system under study to significantly reduce the time of heat preparation and reduce the vehicle gasoline engine fuel consumption running on gasoline and liquefied gas fuel under operating conditions. The phase transition heat accumulator in the heat preparation system of a vehicle gasoline engine (operating both on gasoline and on liquefied gas fuel) reduces the time required to heat the coolant to 50° C and gas consumption to ensure the transition to gas fuel when using various modes (options) of heat preparation in operating conditions.

Reducing gasoline consumption in mixed connected automated vehicles environment: A joint optimization framework for traffic signals and vehicle trajectory

The application of connected automated vehicles can significantly reduce traffic congestion, gasoline consumption, and transportation emissions. Most of the existing research on the connected automated vehicles focuses on the improvement of the performance of the transportation system, the impact on gasoline consumption and transportation emissions is not concerned. This paper aims to study the impact on gasoline consumption and transportation emissions of mixed traffic flow with connected automated vehicles at an isolated intersection. Therefore, a joint optimization framework for traffic signals and vehicle trajectory of mixed connected automated vehicles and human-driven vehicles at an isolated intersection is proposed to reduce gasoline consumption and transportation emissions. The joint optimization framework is a two-level optimization model. Firstly, a proposed dynamic programming at the upper level is applied to optimize traffic signal timing based on predicted vehicle arrival, which can be calculated by the lower level. Secondly, a model predictive control method is proposed at the lower level to optimize vehicle trajectories considering gasoline consumption. Finally, the joint optimization framework is verified in a simulated connected automated vehicle environment and a case study conducted based on an isolated intersection. Numerical results indicate that the joint optimization method can reduce both gasoline consumption and transportation emissions. The reduced vehicle delay, gasoline consumption, and CO2 emissions can be as much as 57.21%, 22.36%, and 18.61%, respectively, for the 100% penetration rate of connected automated vehicles.

Contemporary trends in power electronics converters for charging solutions of electric vehicles

Electrifying the transport sector requires new possibilities for power electronics converters to attain reliable and efficient charging solutions for electric vehicles (EVs). With the continuous development in power electronics converters, the desire to reduce gasoline consumption and to increase the battery capacity for more electric range is achievable for EVs in the near future. The main interface between the power network and EV battery system is a power electronics converter, therefore, there is a considerable need of new power converters with low cost and high reliability for the advance charging mechanism of EVs. The rapid growth in power converter topologies brings substantial opportunities in EV charging process. In view of this fact, this paper investigates the significant aspects, current progress, and challenges associated with several power converters to suggest further improvements in charging systems of EVs. In particular, an extensive analysis of front-end as well as back-end converter configurations is presented. Moreover, the comparative properties of resonant converter topologies along with other DCDC converters are discussed in detail. Additionally, isolated, and non-isolated topologies with soft switching techniques are classified and rigorously analyzed with a view to their respective issues and benefits. It is foreseen that this paper would be a valuable addition and a worthy source of information for researchers exploring the area of power converter topologies for charging solutions of EVs.

Electric passenger vehicles sales and carbon dioxide emission reduction potential in China’s leading markets

Abstract This study summarizes the annual sales and market trends of plug-in electric vehicles in China from 2011 to 2017 at the national and ronal levels. The major performance characteristics of top-selling plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) models sold in China are summarized. Then, incentive policies of PEV adoption are explored at the provincial level in China. Approximately 70% of the total PEV model sales have lower all-electric ranges and battery capacity than average in the top 5 provinces that have sold the most battery electric vehicles (BEVs) or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). Sales by make and model in these top 5 provinces are used to estimate ronal electricity consumption, gasoline replacement and carbon dioxide reductions. From 2011 to 2017, 682,047 PEVs have been sold in the 5 provinces, with 18.3 billion electric vehicle kilometers traveled (VKT). 3.0 TWh of electricity were consumed, reducing gasoline consumption by 1.6 billion liters and CO2 emissions by 611,824 tons. Approximately 70% of the total gasoline replacement and 80% of the total CO2 emissions reduction were contributed by BEVs. A sensitivity analysis is also conducted to assess the impacts of certain parameters on the results.

How much are electric vehicles driven?

ABSTRACTThe prospect for electric vehicles as a climate change solution hinges on their ability to reduce gasoline consumption. But this depends on how many miles electric vehicles are driven and on how many miles would have otherwise been driven in gasoline-powered vehicles. Using newly-available U.S. nationally representative data, this paper finds that electric vehicles are driven considerably fewer miles per year on average than gasoline-powered vehicles. The difference is highly statistically significant and holds for both all-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, for both single- and multiple-vehicle households, and both inside and outside California. The paper discusses potential explanations and policy implications. Overall, the evidence suggests that today’s electric vehicles imply smaller environmental benefits than previously believed.

Fuel consumption and gasoline prices: The role of assortative matching between households and automobiles

Analyses of policies to reduce gasoline consumption have focused on two effects, a compositional effect on the fuel economy of the automotive fleet and a utilization effect on how much people drive. However, the literature has missed a third effect: a matching effect, in which policies change how high-utilization households are matched to fuel-efficient vehicles in equilibrium. We show that higher gas prices should lead to stronger assortative matching. Empirical estimates using US micro-level data are consistent with this hypothesis. We find a $0.50 increase in the gas tax would reduce US gas consumption by 0.8% through the matching effect alone, bringing annual environmental benefits of about $1.7 billion.

The signaling effect of gasoline taxes and its distributional implications

This paper proposes and tests a better-defined interpretation of the different responses of gasoline demand to tax changes and to market-related price changes. Namely, the signaling effect of gasoline taxes is one that impacts on long-run consumer decisions in addition to the incentives provided by tax-inclusive gasoline prices. Our hypothesis is tested using a complete demand system augmented with information on gasoline taxes and fitted to household-level data from the 2006 to 2013 rounds of the US Consumer Expenditure survey. Information on gasoline taxes is found to be a significant determinant of household demand additional to tax-inclusive gasoline prices. The equity implications are examined by contrasting the incidence across income distribution of a simulated $0.22/gallon tax increase to that of a market-related price increase equal in size. The tax increase is clearly regressive, slightly more than the market-related price increase. However, regressivity is by no means a reason to give up gasoline taxes as an instrument for reducing gasoline consumption externalities. Their high effectiveness in reducing gasoline demand implies that small tax increases can substantially improve the environment while minimizing the related distributional effects. Also, gasoline taxes generate revenue that can be used to offset their regressivity.

Modeling and Analysis of Large-Scale Urban Mobility for Green Transportation

Context-aware applications of vehicular social networks (VSNs) play a significant role to achieve the goal of green transportation by sharing driving experience to reduce gasoline consumption. One of the main challenges is to evaluate the performance of these applications, which relies on the underlying VSN mobility model. In this paper, we investigate big urban traffic data to characterize essential features of urban mobility and construct large-scale green urban mobility models. We exploit the road and traffic information to enhance the trip generation algorithm and traffic assignment technique based on the weighted segments of roads. Besides, we perform extensive observations and corrections on the OpenStreetMap imported to simulation of urban mobility to make it analogous to real-world road topology. The experimental results and validation process show that the generated mobility models reveal realistic behavior required for analysis of context-aware applications of VSNs for green transportation systems.

Refining the Evidence: British Columbia’s Carbon Tax and Household Gasoline Consumption

The impact of carbon prices on consumer behavior is a central element in current policy debates dealing with mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. We examine the impact of British Columbia’s carbon tax on private automobile gasoline use.We control for several factors that influenced gasoline demand during our study period, including local public transit improvements and increased cross-border shopping. Our results suggest that a 5 cent per litre carbon tax reduced gasoline consumption by 8%. We find that households residing in Vancouver and other cities responded to the carbon tax, whereas households in small towns and rural areas did not respond. We perform several sensitivity analyses. Even our most conservative lower bound estimate suggests that a 5 cent per litre carbon tax reduced gasoline consumption by 5%.

Vehicle Lifetime and Scrappage Behavior: Trends in the U.S. Used Car Market

Using national data on vehicles in operation, we examine long-run changes in scrappage patterns in passenger cars and light trucks in the United States between 1969 and 2014. We find that the average lifetime for passenger cars has increased from 12.2 to 15.6 years between 1970s and the 2000s. Our central estimate of the elasticity of scrappage with respect to vehicle prices is -0.4, which is substantially different than values adopted in simulation models. These estimates imply that many policies aimed at reducing gasoline consumption, including Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards and gasoline taxes may produce changes in the used vehicle market that are different than prior studies suggest. We also note that consumer scrappage behavior seems to respond more strongly to changes in vehicle price than changes in gasoline price than standard theory would predict.

Deployment and utilization of plug-in electric vehicles in round-trip carsharing systems

ABSTRACTElectric Vehicles (EVs) and Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs) can reduce gasoline consumption, but increase vehicle acquisition costs and introduce operational constraints. We develop a comprehensive approach to EV/PHEV deployment and utilization in round-trip carsharing systems. First, we formulate and solve the tactical problem of utilizing a mix of gasoline vehicles and EVs/PHEVs to serve trip demand, using Mixed Integer Programming optimization to estimate the minimal gasoline consumption in a computationally efficient manner, and simulation to assess the effect of reservation order on realized gasoline consumption. Second, we use these results to inform the strategic deployment of EVs/PHEVs in the carsharing fleet, using meta-optimization. We implement our approach using data from a large carsharing provider. From the perspective of a carsharing operator, our results suggest that replacing some portion of existing gasoline fleets by EVs/PHEVs would result in gasoline savings likely to outweigh upfront investments and the constraints on vehicle utilization that it creates. Moreover, we find that easily implementable heuristics can capture some of these benefits, and that the integration of vehicle utilization patterns into the design of EV/PHEV deployment strategies can result in added benefits.

Gasoline consumption and economic growth: Evidence from Cameroon

ABSTRACTThis study analyzes the gasoline sector and examines the causal relationship between gasoline consumption and economic growth in Cameroon based on annual data during the period 1975–2014. The unit root tests, the autoregressive vector (VAR) model, and the Wald test to test causality were used as econometric methodologies. The results show that the series are all I(1) and that there is no long-term relationship. The results also show that there is a bidirectional causality relationship between gasoline consumption and economic growth in Cameroon. This means that an increase in gasoline consumption affects economic growth with feedback effect. In view of the result of causality, reducing gasoline consumption without appropriate and established energy policies is not a feasible situation to maintain Cameroon’s economic growth.

The Signaling Effect of Gasoline Taxes and Its Distributional Implications

This paper proposes and tests a better defined interpretation of the different responses of gasoline demand to tax changes and to market-related price changes. Namely, the signaling effect of gasoline taxes is one that impacts on long-run consumer decisions in addition to the incentives provided by tax-inclusive gasoline prices. Our hypothesis is tested using a complete demand system augmented with information on gasoline taxes and fitted to household-level data from the 2006 to 2013 rounds of the US Consumer Expenditure survey. Information on gasoline taxes is found to be a significant determinant of household demand additional to tax-inclusive gasoline prices. The equity implications are examined by contrasting the incidence across income distribution of a simulated $0.22/gallon tax increase to that of a market-related price increase equal in size. The tax increase is clearly regressive, slightly more than the market-related price increase. However, regressivity is by no means a reason to give up gasoline taxes as an instrument for reducing gasoline consumption externalities. Their high effectiveness in reducing gasoline demand implies that small tax increases can substantially improve the environment while minimizing the related distributional effects. Also, gasoline taxes generate revenue that can be used to offset their regressivity.

Refining the Evidence: British Columbia's Carbon Tax and Household Gasoline Consumption

The impact of carbon prices on consumer behavior is a central element in current policy debates dealing with mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions. In this article, we examine the impact of British Columbia’s carbon tax on household consumption of gasoline for private automobile use. Our use of household-level data on gasoline expenditures allows us to control for several factors that influenced gasoline demand during our study period, including local public transit improvements and increased cross-border shopping in Washington State. Overall, our results suggest that a 5 cent per litre carbon tax reduced gasoline consumption by 8%. We find that households residing in Vancouver and other cities responded to the carbon tax, whereas households in small towns and rural areas did not respond. We perform several sensitivity analyses accounting for carbon leakage and the potential that the carbon tax was not fully passed through to the retail price of gasoline. Even our most conservative lower bound estimate suggests that a 5 cent per litre carbon tax reduced gasoline consumption by 5%.

Vehicle miles (not) traveled: Fuel economy requirements, vehicle characteristics, and household driving

A major concern with addressing the negative externalities of gasoline consumption by regulating fuel economy, rather than increasing fuel taxes, is that households respond by driving more. This paper exploits a discrete threshold in the eligibility for Cash for Clunkers to show that fuel economy restrictions lead households to purchase vehicles that have lower cost-per-mile, but are also smaller and lower-performance. Whereas the former effect can increase driving, the latter effect can reduce it. Results indicate that these households do not drive more, suggesting that behavioral responses do not necessarily undermine the effectiveness of fuel economy restrictions at reducing gasoline consumption.